


Do You Love Me?

by orphan_account



Series: Stupid Dorky Love Story [2]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: AU, Adoption, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Blow Jobs, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, Happy Ending, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Masturbation, i dont really know what i'm doing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-16
Updated: 2014-05-10
Packaged: 2017-12-26 18:06:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 34
Words: 101,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/968688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A cliche AU in which Levi goes to a college in France for a semester and Eren wants to tell him he loves him but can't seem to.</p><p>Rated M for blowjobs and fricklefrack.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> It's poop.

Five minutes to say their goodbyes.

Levi had his back against the wall, arms folded and looking toward the floor with his eyes closed in a relaxed manner, waiting for Eren to say something. His carry-on sat neatly beside him, a gap the same size as his bag separating the two boys. The older of the two had just recently mentioned going to France for a college semester to study abroad. By recently, that meant about three hours before arriving at the airport.

Eren let out a sigh, not wanting him to go through with it because they would be apart for so long, but it was going to happen anyway so he should get over it. Or, that’s what Levi thought anyway.

“You aren’t going to say anything? I thought you would miss me. But you’re just going to be a brat, huh.” Levi mumbled, followed by a “tch.”

That being followed by more silence, Levi opened his eyes and looked over to Eren. The younger man was staring at his feet. “Why couldn’t you have told me earlier… that you were leaving?” He finally spoke, however he didn’t return the gaze.

“I didn’t think you’d be so whiney about it.” Levi admitted, looking down to his cell phone to see what time it was. “Look, I have three minutes before I have to get on the plane. Is that all you’re going to say?”

Eren turned to look at Levi, green eyes shining flawlessly and showing his sadness about Levi’s upcoming departure. “I am going to miss you, Levi. It really sucks that you’re going to be gone for like half a year and I’m only gonna get to talk to you on the weekends,” he cringed, causing the bridge of his nose to crinkle. “Which, like you said, is only if the Wi-Fi at your college isn’t shitty and—”

“Eren,” Levi groaned.

“What?” Eren sighed; scratching the side of his head then lowering his arm down by his side.

Levi took hold of the collar of Eren’s t-shirt and pulled him down to his level, pressing his lips to the other’s. One minute and thirty two seconds was all the time to spare for their goodbye kiss, though being in a public place didn’t really allow them to do much of anything even in the small amount of time they had. Eren kissed him back without hesitation, placing a hand on the older man’s cheek and tilting his own head to the right, deepening their kiss, asking without words if Levi would reconsider leaving him.

The answer to Eren’s unspoken question was a simple no which came with Levi pulling away and stepping back to pick up his bag. “I’ll call you when I get settled.” He promised.

Eren watched as Levi began strolling toward the flight gate. Reaching his arm outward and a pleading look filling his eyes, he had to force himself to stop and let Levi go.

“I love you…” Eren whispered to Levi’s back once he had entered the flight gate with other borders.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kind of a cute chapter, and Mikasa is here with her snarky ooc ways. Nothing more than a phone call. *is getting to the good stuff*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i found my flash drive with all that i've written on it. So, yay. Longerish chapters that i dont have to re-write. *casually rolls down a hill*

Eren sat lazily on the couch in his living room, flipping aimlessly through the TV guide trying to find something to watch. Every so often he would glace at his phone to see if Levi had called him or texted him, but so far there was nothing.

His sister, Mikasa, sat a cushion away from him with her legs pulled up beside her on the couch, her elbow leaning on the arm of the couch and her cheek resting against her hand. She looked over to see Eren check his phone for what seemed the hundredth time. A smug smile pushed itself onto her lips as she spoke. “You know… if he hasn’t called yet something must’ve happened.”

Eren ignored her. She liked to tease him about his relationship with Levi, which he didn’t much like. Though it was better than how it was when he and Levi first started dating; Mikasa being very protective of her brother would nearly bite Levi’s head off every time a snide or sassy comment toward Eren came out of his mouth.

“Like, maybe his plane crashed into the ocean,” She sat with her back against the couch and pushed the hair from her eyes, but ignored it after it fell back into place. “Or maybe the plane never took off because he got arrested for being a d—”

“Mikasa,” Eren shot a glare her way and looked back at his phone when she laughed at his expression. “You’re not funny, okay?”

“Maybe not to you,” Her voice had an upward, jokey inflection to it, but she saw Eren was not amused by her tone. “Okay, okay. Sorry. I’m sure everything is fine, Eren. Don’t be so worried all the time.”

Almost as if on cue, Eren’s phone began to vibrate. He didn’t want to seem like he had been waiting for it all day, thought he had, so he let it buzz a few more times, then picked it up and answered it casually. “Hello,”

“Eren,” Levi greeted, followed by the sound of mattress springs being strained underneath a body.

“Levi,” Eren was so happy to hear his voice, though he hid it pretty well within his tone. “How was the flight?”

“It was terribly dirty. When I finally got to the college and my dorm I must have taken an hour long shower before I remembered to call you.”

“I was wondering what took you so long,” Eren laughed. “I mean I figured the flight was long but now I see you took even longer to unpack all your things and get dressed, huh?”

“No,”

“Huh?”

“I haven’t unpacked yet. I’m not even dressed.”

Erens cheeks flushed bright red realizing that Levi called him without clothing on. He was naked. “Why?”

“Because I’ve been on a plane for like six hours,” Levi explained, a bored tone covering his voice. “A dirty plane, might I add. Also, I have no roommate assigned at the moment so if I want to sit around naked I will.”

“Oh.” Was all Eren could say in response. His cheeks were burning and he really hoped Mikasa didn’t notice. However, she did, and gave him a suspicious look, so he stood and strolled casually to his bedroom, leaving Mikasa alone in their living room. After entering his bedroom and shutting the door behind him, he sat on his bed, listening to Levi ramble on about the horrible flight and the annoying group he had to sit near.

“They wouldn’t shut up, Eren. All I wanted to do was sleep for a little whiling but no, that didn’t happen because this group of individuals… they were acting like a bunch of drunken lunatics, shouting and whatnot. I could have killed someone.”

“I didn’t know you liked napping.” Eren joked nervously, his voice cracking slightly.

As Levi went on and on about the flight, all Eren could think about was that Levi was naked. The image had crossed his mind before—what did Levi look like under all the neat and pressed layers he always seemed to be wearing? Eren could always feel the muscular build underneath his boyfriends’ shirt when they would hug, he felt flustered with just the thought of his shirtless torso. Would it be so wrong if his mind wandered downward?

Eren moved back along his bed until his back was sitting up against the wall. Levi continued on as though the older male had no idea Eren wasn’t really paying attention to his story, and Eren merely hummed small replies like “mhm” and “huh,” whenever Levi paused.

Biting his bottom lip, Eren could feel his cheeks get even hotter to the thought of Levi’s undoubtedly perfect body. His thought sunk lower, the image of Levi’s lower body making itself known to his imagination. Sadly, that’s all it was. Imagination.

He knew he’d get to see it one day, though. When Levi came back from France he was sure the two of them would—Eren opened his eyes to make the thought leave. He felt so weird thinking about things like this. To make matters worse, he couldn’t seem to speak right now. He sat there now, trying to focus back in on Levi’s conversation.

“—And then I got here, and let me tell you Eren, I have never been so relieved to have taken that French class… Nobody hear speaks one word of fucking English—”

Levi hadn’t even noticed that Eren wasn’t paying attention. A silent sigh escaped the younger boys’ lips and he let himself fall, now laying on his right side with his head against his pillow. Just listening to Levi talk made him feel flustered, though he really wished that Levi hadn’t told him he wasn’t wearing any clothing. It was all Eren could think about, now.

“Eren,”

His name being called didn’t faze him; Eren was only thinking about Levi and his perfection now.

“Eren,” Levi repeated. “Can you hear me?”

“What?” Eren finally answered. His thoughts detoured from its current image. “Did you say something?”

Levi sighed into the receiver. “I said I think I’m going to go. I’m going on a tour of the campus with some others tomorrow at 8 A.M. and if I’m late I won’t get my schedule at the end. So…”

“Oh…” Eren turned onto his back and looked up at the ceiling, his phone held tightly in his nearly-shaking hand. “Okay.”

“Bye, brat,” Levi hummed, his thumb near the “end call” key.

Suddenly, Eren wanted to actually tell Levi the three words that he didn’t get to hear when getting on the plane earlier. Those three words that pretty much defined whether or not a relationship was going well or not. The three words that he hadn’t gotten to hear back. All Eren wanted was to hear Levi say it back.

“Levi wait—” But before Eren could finish his plea, Levi had hung up. “…I love you,” Eren whispered into his phone as though Levi could still hear him. “I love you so much…”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skype is fun. Yay, Skype conversations. Woo. Video-chatting. Hooray.

Eren sat across from Mikasa at the dining room table picking at his spaghetti with his fork, no intention to get a mouth full. He mindlessly continued to twirl the sauce covered noodles around his fork and pulled it from the plate and watching the noodles sink back down to the others on the plate. It hadn’t even been a whole day and he really, really fucking missed Levi.

“Eren, what did he say? You’re clearly upset.” Mikasa finally spoke up, picking her glass up off the table and taking a sip of her water.

“It’s not what he said.” Eren mumbled, dropping his fork onto his plate and sitting back in his chair. He rested his left arm on the table and tapped his fingers impatiently as though waiting for something. “It’s what he didn’t say.”

Mikasa eyes him curiously from across the table. “What didn’t he say?”

“It doesn’t matter. Stop acting like you care. You don’t like him anyway so you’ll just tease me about it.”

“Eren when have I ever teased you about Levi,” She was obviously being sarcastic now.

“Earlier when you said his plane crashed—”

“Seriously, what did he not say?”

“Can we just drop it?” Eren’s voice was filled with annoyance. He didn’t like when Mikasa would press on about things she wasn’t even a part of. Like seriously Mikasa, nobody asked you.

“If you eat, I’ll drop it.” Mikasa smiled.

The next day was Sunday.

Eren sat patiently waiting for Levi to get back from the campus tour. It was Sunday, meaning that they would both have school tomorrow, and Eren would have to go through the week without talking to him.

The next five days were uneventful; routine of school, home, and school. It was all a blur to Eren, whom only kept wishing for the weekend and daydreaming about Levi.

Finally, Friday rolled around and Eren pushed himself through his crappy day at school, only enjoying their short lunch time to talk to Armin about life and all that shit going on. Eren and Armin had been friends for pretty much forever and they were always the first person that the other told about anything. Armin was the first to know about Levi and Eren when it they got together four months ago.

Once school had let out and Mikasa and Eren got home, Eren went straight to his bedroom without so much as a glance to his adoptive sister. He seemed eager—Levi would be in his dorm at this time since he was, what, six hours ahead of Eren? Seven? Something like that.

Eren slid into the rolling chair at his desk and opened his laptop. As he pressed the power button on his laptop, he slipped his hand into his pocket to pull out his phone to see if anyone—mainly Levi, otherwise he wouldn’t really have given a single damn—had texted him. Ah! A smile graced the young man as the small screen lit up: “New Text Message from Levi” To make the fact the Levi texted him first better, it was only received three minutes ago.

Eren tapped his phone to open the message. “Get on Skype.” That was all it said? Turning back to his laptop, he did as he was told and signed on to his Skype. The little orange dot indicating an unread message appeared by Levi’s contact name, and the shape that indicated whether or not you were on line was shaded green with the small check shape.

Before Eren could even click to view the message, the ever so sweet sound of a Skype call ringing from the other line started to play. He didn’t want to make it seem like he was too eager so he waited a minute before accepting the call with video.

“Hey,” He greeted Eren before lifting a forkful of instant ramen to his mouth. “Took you long enough to get home,”

The sound of his voice was better than just music to Erens ears, and he restrained the goofy, joyful grin that was fighting his all-the-time almost-scowl. “I just got home like five minutes ago.”

Levi half-smiled and ate his forkful of noodles before speaking again. “How was your day?”

“Well, it could have been better,” Eren leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest, looking to his monitor with an intense gaze. “Classes took forever and lunch felt way too short—oh, that reminds me: Armin told me to tell you ‘hi’.”

The two of them talked for four hours, making it past midnight for Levi now. Neither of the boys seemed to mind however, carrying on conversation and only stopping to use the bathroom or get something to eat. Mikasa had to pretty much drag Eren out of his room so he would eat dinner, but he just ended up bring it back to his room and talking to Levi while he quickly scarfed down his meal.

After another hour, things started to get calm and their conversations merely consisted of hums and nods, and mild laughter. Most of this came from Eren when Levi was trying to speak to him in French, which, sadly, he wasn’t all that good at yet.

“Shut up, brat,” Levi sighed, closing his eyes and arching his back, his chest going towards the monitor as he stretched his arms up over his head. He made small groans along with the popping sound of his spine as he adjusted himself and continued to stretch. “I can’t help that I’m not an expert yet. Parlez-vous français, Eren? Non, vous n'avez pas, parce que c'est difficile et que tu baises up.”

“I have no idea what you just said,” Eren said between laughs at Levi’s attempt at a French accent to go along with what he had said. “What did you say?”

“I said ‘Do you speak French, Eren?” Levi opened his eyes.

Eren shook his head and was smiling that goofy smile that he had tried to hold back earlier. But there was no point now, he was happy. “No,”

“’Because it’s hard, and you would fuck up.’ Is also what I said.”

“You’re an ass.”

“Merci.” Levi smirked.

A silence blew past the two of them before Levi started speaking in hushed tones, as though trying to keep even Eren from hearing what he said. “Eren, I want you to do something for me.”

“Sure, anything,” His ocean-like eyes gleamed in anticipation.

“Touch yourself.” Levi said without the slightest hint of hesitation or regret in his voice. His eyes were locked onto Eren’s—well, as much as they could be from a monitor and across the ocean—with fierce intensity, almost digging past Eren’s eyes into his brain to see what he was thinking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> credit to Google translate for the French to English translations. I am such a failure.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So. Finally, this happens. Eren and Levi have a special moment. It's...smutish. smutish? smutish. woo. smutish. thanks skype, you and your... connection. Also, other things happen. anyone ever just say "DAMNIT LEVI WHY"!? Well, you may soon. I dunno.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haaaaaaaaaaaaaaad a lot of help with this. Because I can't write smuuut. Because I fail. Thank you jean_huh_kirschnickerdoodle. You rock baby. I love you. I do.

Acting as though he had just been asked to rip his kidney out and give it to Levi, Eren cringed and shrunk back shyly into his chair, red-faced and dry mouthed. “What…?”

Levi repeated his request, keeping the sharp look locked with Eren’s eyes. For some reason, Eren could not comprehend any reason why he wouldn’t or shouldn’t oblige, doing as Levi had pretty much ordered, but Eren wanted to tease like Levi always did. Though, this time around the teasing wasn’t for something small like a kiss in public—which, really, Eren didn’t mind doing in the first place. Eren became very flustered, his cheeks showing it before he could even speak. “…Okay, Levi.”

Shuffling awkwardly over to his bed, he placed his laptop at the foot, squirming in place as Levi kept his piercing eyes on him. Levi’s growing impatience was pretty clear as he visually sighed, never removing his eyes from view of his boyfriend.  
Eren scratched the back of his head feeling awkward tension. “Um… sorry. I don’t know—“

“Don’t try and give me this you don’t know how shit, brat. I know you touch yourself.”  
Eren flushed, not knowing why because it’s not like masturbation wasn’t a common part of life, anyway. “No, it’s not that. It’s just… embarrassing.”

“Just do it.”

Part of him wanted to rebel against being ordered, but Eren couldn’t deny the effect the authoritative voice had on the now-growing bulge in his pants. Sliding a shaky hand under the elastic band of his pajamas, which he was now very glad he slipped into the last time he went to the bathroom, he wrapped his fingers around his growing erection, finding himself surprisingly sensitive in his nervous state.

Doing his best to keep his breathing controlled, not wanting to let out a moan (incase Mikasa were to still be awake), he slowly began to pump his hand, glancing up at Levi’s image on the screen through lidded eyes.

“Hold up your shirt, I can’t see.”

It wasn’t a request, and Eren put the hem of his shirt between his teeth, revealing his naturally toned torso with protruding hip bones, muscles twitching with each stroke. Closing his eyes, he started to pump faster, massaging his thumb over the sensitive tip, precum just starting to leak out as he found himself surprisingly aroused by his audience.

“Eren…”

Eren’s breath hitched as he heard his name coming from Levi’s lips, something he always thought about when he did just this. “Yeah?”

“Do you want me to touch you?” Eren felt his stomach flip and he looked up at Levi with what he could only assumed was a dumbstruck face. “Don’t stop.” 

Doing as he was told, Eren started stoking himself again, he refused to look up at the screen; he was embarrassed. “Of course, I do…” he mumbled.

Levi smirked, pleased now, watching the boy on his screen twitch at the thought. “How do you want me to touch you?”  
That caused Eren to pause, and he wondered if Levi noticed his fingers trying to move lower on their own. “I..” 

Levi leaned closer to his screen, lowering his voice to a sultry tone. “Do you want me inside of you, Eren?”

The image of Levi bending him over a table and fucking him stupid popped into Eren’s mind, bodies sweating, cum leaking, teeth nipping, breaths panting, and he found a whimper forcing its way from his lips.

“Show me what you want me to do, Eren.”

He could feel himself nearing climax at the thought of Levi touching him, but he didn’t want to come just thinking of being touched, he wanted to imagine his boyfriend thrusting inside of him. Forcing his fingers to uncoil from his erection, Eren made a show of licking his fingers, a string of saliva connecting his lips and fingertips.

Replacing his shirt between his teeth, he reached his hand down between his legs, ignoring his throbbing cock. Eren hesitated, wet finger pressed against his entrance, twitching underneath his touch.

“Do it, brat...” 

Eren could hear Levi’s breath hitch, and could swear he heard rustling on the other end of the connection. Was Levi touching himself while watching Eren jack off? He couldn’t be sure, but he knew the thought sent a shudder down his spine, and without commanding his body to do so, he felt his finger slip into his hole.

The material between his teeth muffled his whine at the twinge of pain, which ebbed as he thought of that being Levi’s finger inside him instead of his own. This was new to him, and he was more than a little intimidated, and kept his finger just inside his entrance, fighting against it sucking him in.

“Eren, go deeper.” 

This time Eren was sure Levi was touching himself, even if he wasn’t actively getting off, as his eyes were glazed over with an undeniable lust. Lust directed at him. That lust threw all reservations out the window, and he stopped fighting his body, letting his finger be swallowed. It was unimaginable hot, and Eren couldn’t help thinking it felt…weird. That is until he felt his finger rub against an area that was more dense, and an undeniable wave a pleasure coursed through his body, hips bucking as a moan pushed from his lips.

Levi chuckled, low and sensual. “Did I hit a good spot, Eren?”  
Eren continued to massage that sensitive spot, finger beckoning inside him, body heating up as an undeniable tingling sensation spread through his body. “Oh god, Levi, there!” Pleasure overwhelming any embarrassment over what he was doing, he wrapped his other hand around his cock, feverishly stroking from base to tip. “Mn~! Levi, I’m co—“ 

Moans cut him off mid-sentence as he felt his body tense, hips thrusting on their own, hole clenching around his finger, twitching as he felt hot cum spurt into his hand and onto his chest, leaving him panting and breathless as he released himself.  
Panting harder than before from his finish, Eren removed his hands from where they were and places them beside him on his bed, trembling slightly from what he had just done—from knowing Levi had watched him do it as he did so. His breaths were harsh and his cheeks were burning, flushed deeply from having Levi smile at him on his monitor.

Eren looked away and covered himself quickly with his blanket—he now felt awkward being pretty much naked even if it was for Levi. Levi was chuckling lightly about how flustered Eren had gotten during the last part of his endeavor; he thought it was cute.

“Levi…” Eren pushed the others name from his lips, slowly looking back to the older man on his screen. He was finally going to say it. “I love you.”

The laughing stopped abruptly. What? Levi stared at Eren now, frozen. Did he really just say that? “You what?”

“I love you,” Eren repeated, proud of himself for being able to actually tell Levi this time. He had tried so many times before, and this time Levi heard him—

The call suddenly ended. Eren blinked in confusion twice before he waved his cursor around the screen, then onto the green “call” button. Before he could click on it, he noticed the green symbol beside Levi’s contact was now blank, white on the inside of the green outlined shape.

“Fucking connection problems.” Eren mumbled under his breath, ignoring the image of Levi’s face before the call had ended.

His face… he had looked panic-stricken. His brows pointed slightly upward and his eyes franticly darting from his keyboard then back to his monitor back up at Eren, wordlessly saying too many things—and then it just ended right there.

Eren shook his head. “No, it was just a connection issue. Right? Yeah, right. It was. Calm your ass, Jaeger.” He told himself out loud, then half-laughed at the words he had used.

As he came back from the bathroom to clean himself up, and change back into his boxers and pajama pants, he heard his phone buzz back at his desk. He forced himself to rise from his bed more than he had to put his clothes back on and walked tiredly to his desk: New Text Message from Levi.

“We’ll talk tomorrow. Sorry.” Was all it had said. Eren thought nothing of it; Levi never really put too much effort into text messages late at night anyway.

“K. Love you.” Eren replied back quickly, holding his phone tightly as he practically floated back to his bed. 

Levi didn’t reply after that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hooray for being a failure. Also i have made a recent discovery that my story is similar to that of another, so i now have to change a lot of junk. darn. Anyway. Woo.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi is fucking shit up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i' m not sure if anyone has ever done a thing where a fight is because of something Levi said and it wasn't misinterpreted by our precious little Eren this time.  
> He just said the wrong thing, guys. *whispers* don't kill me.

“We need to talk about last night.”

Eren stared at text that greeted him when he woke up, a lump forming in his throat. We need to talk? About last night? Levi had sent it about an hour ago, though he knew Eren wouldn’t be up until, well, about the time he was now.

“Give me ten minutes.” Eren replied before forcing himself out of bed to go use the bathroom. After he finished in there, he hurried to the kitchen and made himself a bowl of Fruit Loops. He ate quickly, ignoring Mikasa who asked him if he wanted eggs while she was making them.

Finally, he returned to his bedroom and plopped down onto his bed and opened his laptop. He didn’t have to go through the task of turning it on and logging in because all he did the night before was sign out of Skype and shut the lid.

After signing in to Skype, he saw he had one pending message from Levi that was not sent very long ago. “Call me when you see this.” And so he did.

The call pending beeps went on for a while as though Levi wasn’t in the room waiting for the call. Or maybe he was doing what Eren had done the night before and didn’t want to seem like he had been waiting for the others beckoning call—

“Eren…” Levi greeted him. He didn’t sound like himself. His voice was, to Eren’s surprise, shaky. Not enough for some random person to notice, but Eren, having known Levi for quite a while, knew the difference in his tone and just hearing his name being said that way was nerve-wracking.

“What’s wrong?” Eren half-demanded, half-cried. He didn’t mean to sound that whiney as he asked. He was genuinely worried about Levi who never really sounded this way.

“We need to talk about what you said to me last night.”

“You mean ‘I love you’? What about it—”

“Why did you say that?” Levi’s voice was nearly in a whisper, but the tone was rough making it sound like a yell-whisper. Not something he did often… actually, this was new to Eren. He never heard Levi sound the way he did right now. He had wanted to blame it on the connection, but Eren knew that the connection had nothing to do with it.

“Because I do—” He was cut off by the sudden realization that Levi actually had faked a connection problem that night. Eren had been denying it throughout the night, reassuring himself that Levi would never do that. Not to him. But he did. “—Love you.”

“Do you?” Levi’s tone suddenly became harsh. He seemed doubtful. He had doubted him when Eren told him he liked him four months ago, before they started dating. He was acting just like he had when Eren had confessed the first time, except this time he didn’t laugh shyly and nod stupidly.

“Are you mad at me for saying that?” Eren questioned. He didn’t want to be the one being interrogated, not again. He didn’t even want to think about last time Levi questioned him so hard about something so small.

No. Wait. This wasn’t something small. Eren had finally fucking said “I love you” and he gets hung up on? That’s complete bullshit. Levi could have at least… he could have at least smiled. Or something. Anything but hanging up on Eren, at that point, would have been fucking fine. But no, it still happened.

“No—”

Eren cut him off mid-answer. “Levi, did you hang up on me because of that?” His voice was filled with shock as though he didn’t believe himself or what he had just asked. But Eren knew it was true, he knew Levi had purposely done that. He waited impatiently for Levi’s response.

“Yeah,”

“Don’t deny it—wait. What? You did?” Eren was suddenly filled with so much rage, enough to punch a hole through his bedroom wall. He didn’t know why he was so angry and why—Why didn’t Levi try to deny it, at least?

“Yeah,” Levi repeated, his voice was softer than it was before. “I did.”

Eren and Levi sat in silence, staring at each other through their monitors. “Why?”  
“Why did you say you loved me? You didn’t answer my question.”

“Because I do love you.” Eren spoke through his teeth, trying to keep his glaring, piercing anger from showing. “Because I’ve been trying to tell you for the past two weeks and every time I got the chance you fucking left or hung up or—you didn’t say it back, and I want to know why! Why didn’t you say it back?”

“Because I don’t.” Levi’s answer was immediate and rushed. He raised his eyebrows almost as though that small action would take back what he had just said. He opened his mouth to speak again, but stopped himself. He couldn’t fix what he just said. No matter how hard he wished he could, no matter how he’d re-word what he said, no matter how many times he would tell Eren he didn’t mean it that way… it could never be fixed.

They sat in silence again. Eren felt a mixture of emotions now. “…You… you fucking…” Eren could barely speak, trying to hard not to break down right there. “Levi… I… fuck…”

Levi stared at his monitor, at Erens contact picture, at the little grayish rectangle around the words “Call Ended” with the call deration beside it. He clamped tightly to his bottom lip with his teeth, moving his hand back to the touch pad of his laptop. He was tempted to call Eren back, or maybe leave him about twenty messages saying “I’m sorry,” but then—

“You could have lied.” Eren sent him before signing out of Skype

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> they're so ooc i'm sorry i'm not good at this.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren feels like a shitbag.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry it's short. I'm having trouble with the next chapter and i figured this was the best place to end it because I don't want shitty writing in my already shitty fic making anyone upset or whatever.  
> I feel so lazy. Sorry.

Eren shoved his face into his pillow and sobbed. He sobbed to the point that his throat became sore and his eyes hurt and burned. This was his and Levi’s first argument that had resulted in Eren feeling like a total shitbag.  
But really, Levi seemed so calm and casual about it like nothing between them even mattered. He could have lied. Eren wiped his eyes but his tears continued to burn and streak down his cheeks, wanting to take back the message he had sent. It was better to be honest then to lie even if it hurt the other person, Eren had always been told. But… this really fucking hurt. Like a lot. How could someone just casually state that they don’t love another? And in this relationship… What even was Levi trying to do to him!

Putting on a brave face, Eren sat up and rubbed his eyes against the back of his hands until they were free of tears. He did the same to his cheeks and then groaned, deciding it was best to just take a shower. He got up and forced himself to his closet, flung the doors open, and grabbed a random shirt, a pair of jeans and a pair of boxers. He really didn’t even care what he looked like today. He’d walk around in nothing but his boxers if Mikasa wasn’t going to be at the house with him all day.

“Mikasa,” He called, opening the door to the bathroom, faking through his sadness and using the normal tone he always had, despite how it hurt his throat even more than the crying seemed to. “Do you need to use the bathroom?”

There was no response, so he had assumed she didn’t. He walked into the bathroom, placed his clean clothes on the sink counter, and stripped off what clothing he already on. He turned the hot water on but just watched as it fell down into the tub from the shower head.

Eren began to cry again. Not nearly as heavy as before though and he turned to look at himself in the mirror. He was disgusted with himself for crying so much since he had woken up. To think, Levi could have this much effect on him! Eren nearly rubbed his face raw against the back of his hand. This is such crap. He shouldn’t be crying… he shouldn’t. Should he?  
Forcing himself to step into the shower, Eren tried so hard to get Levi off of his mind. He didn’t want to fight with him. He didn’t want him to not love him. But he also didn’t want Levi to lie and say he did love him if he didn’t. Not that Levi is the type to lie, as Eren had figured out earlier.

It was like his mind blatantly made him relive the short conversation to the point that Eren felt as though he was literally drowning in his own emotions. His heart ached, his eyes were sore and his cheeks red and raw from the constant rubbing, his throat was scratchy and his chest was burning on the inside. Why couldn’t he get over this? Oh, that’s right. He loved Levi, that perfect bastard.

Water continued its way down his back, the flawless image of Levi now taking over Eren’s vision and mind. Normally, he wouldn’t have minded, but this time it was different. That flawless image looked more hurt and used than anything he had ever seen, and Levi none the less, looking… Scared. What was this? He remembered the exact face Levi had made when Eren finally told him that he loved him. He wasn’t shocked, nor angry, and he didn’t look the least bit condescending. Levi was actually afraid.

“I love you,” Eren mumbled, reaching out to the nothingness in front of him as though Levi was actually standing in front of him.

He just stood there, his arm outstretched and his fingers shaking as though a burst of frigid air had just run him over. He had eaten, he had slept decently, so why was his mind playing these hallucinated images of the one he loved so looking at him with such fear? What the hell was Levi so scared of?

And why was he being so cold about the whole thing?!

Though, now that Eren thought of it while still seeing Levi before him, he remembered how cold Levi had acted toward him when they first met, and under such awkward circumstances, too. Then he heaved out a sigh. 

_Now was not the time to think about Levi in the shower._


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Today, we see the Rivaille in his unnatural environment, having to adapt to his surroundings, in no attempt to make nice with the excited girl who sits with him at the nice little cafe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And two weeks later, here is the next chapter. I hope it was worth the wait (probably not.)

Levi sat there, eyes narrowed, staring at the tea cup sitting on the table before him, phone beside the cup. He wanted desperately for Eren reply to the four texts that he had sent, yet he kept telling himself _you didn’t fuck up, Levi. He misunderstood you. You didn’t fuck up. He did. He’s being a little bitch. You didn’t do anything wrong. Stop waiting around for him to text you, he’s just being a bitch._

“Can I sit here?”

Levi looked up to the girl that had approached him. She had glasses, her hair was in a very messy ponytail, and she had this smile that made her look like she was excited about everything and anything. Levi cringed then looked back to his tea. “Why?”

“You look lonely,” She sat on the chair beside him without an answer, placing her coffee in front of her on the table and eyed him curiously. “And it’s not good to look lonely.”

“It is if you want to be alone.” Levi replied coldly. He wouldn’t look at the girl sitting beside him. He didn’t really want to be alone. He wanted to be with Eren. And she wasn’t Eren.

“Well, if you wanted to be alone you shouldn’t have come to this nice little café, bud.” The girl replied, pouring a packet of sugar into her coffee. “People like to talk in places like this, Rivaille.”

How’d she know his name? Looking up again, Levi realized the girl beside him was one of the other students from his campus. Zoe? That was her name, he thought. Yeah, that was her; she was the one from the tour that had arrived ten minutes late and apologized in flawless French. He sighed and grumbled to himself, picking his tea cup up, palm over the rim and sipped in his unique way. “Look, Zoe was it? Yeah I—”

“Hanji.” She interrupted.

“What?”

“I prefer Hanji. It’s my last name, but it’s so much more unique than Zoe, don’t you think? I like unique things.”

So that’s why she had called him by his last name? Levi’s gaze hardened and he was annoyed from being interrupted for such a stupid reason. Regardless, he fixed his statement, “Look, Hanji, I’d really rather you not sit here.”

“Well that sucks for you now, doesn’t it?” Hanji hummed, leaning back in the chair and smiling toward her coffee. “Why don’t you have any friends yet?”

“Excuse me?”

“I didn’t mean it that way. I mean like, okay, so, we go to the same college, yeah? For the past… two weeks? Yeah, two weeks, you have been going off by yourself, and you don’t talk to anyone.”

“Have you been stalking me with your shitty glasses or something?” Levi hissed.

Shrugging off the insult, Hanji continued. “It’s not good to be a loner, Rivaille.”

“It is when you fuck a relationship by opening your fucking mouth.”

“Oh? Opening up to a stranger, how sweet.”

Levi downed the rest of his tea and stood, leaving the cup on the small plate when he did. “I’m not. And I don’t plan on it. Don’t talk to me.”

As he made his way out of the café, the chime from the bell above the door annoyed him, and he made his way down the sidewalk, glaring at the ground more intensely with each step he took. 

“Seriously, fuck everyone… Fuck that Hanji girl, fuck everyone, fuck Er—” He stopped himself. He knew it wasn’t Eren’s fault that this happened, but he didn’t want to admit it. Really, all Levi wanted was for Eren to reply to his messages, or call him, or be waiting for him on Skype when Levi returned to his room. The possibility of that was slim; when Eren was upset, his hardheadedness multiplied ten times and he rarely came out of such a bratty state. However, this time, it was Levi’s fault. He shouldn’t have said what he did, he didn’t mean to say it that way. 

I should call him… Levi mumbled and stuck his hand in his pocket. After fishing around for a moment, he groaned and turned the other way. “Fuck my life.”

-

Eren went back into his bedroom to retrieve his phone. He wanted to talk to someone and Armin was the best choice. He picked his phone up beside his laptop and unlocked it, and stared at his glowing screen. _One missed call from Levi. Four new text messages from Levi._

“So, he’s really sorry…” Eren mumbled. He considered replying, but shook his head and went into his contacts, selected Armin’s name, and waited for the blond boy to pick up.

After three rings, Armin answered. “Eren?”

“Armin, do you have any plans today?”

“Well, I was gonna go to the movies—”

“Can I come? We can see whatever you planned on seeing, can I please?” Eren longed for interaction suddenly, even if not from the one person he craved it from most.

Hearing the pleading tone in Eren’s voice, Armin sighed to himself. “Well, okay. Do you want us to come pick you up?”

“That’d be great since Mikasa has the car—what do you mean ‘us’? Who else is go—”

“Be there in ten minutes, _douchebag_.” The call ended.

Eren glared at his phone, Jeans voice echoing in his head. Fuck Jean. Really, Armin, why? Why are you hanging out with that son of a b—

Being thrown from his thought by the feeling of his phone vibrating in his palm, Eren sighed deeply. _Five new text messages from Levi_. He decided to look, but only at the last one, and he wouldn’t reply, no matter what it said.

_“I miss you babe.”_

Eren’s cheeks flushed at the message. “…Babe?” He forced himself to turn his phone off and shove it in his jeans pocket and head back into the living room while waiting for Armin and the biggest asshole on the planet to come pick him up for whatever movie.

-

Levi grumbled as he pushed the door to the café open. Hanji was right when she said a café isn’t a good place to be alone, because the place was pretty much packed now. He sighed, making his way back to the table he had sat at when drinking his tea—

“Where the fuck is my phone…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Hanji so much, I just felt that needed to be said.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren goes to the movies with Armin and Jean, and it's a fun time. Also, Levi throws an almost-tantrum trying to find Hanji, and Hanji makes a discovery. In addition to that, we get to see what Levi's messages to Eren earlier that day were.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Hanji.

After Jean and Armin picked Eren up, they had time to kill before the matinée showings so they drove around town and browsed video game selections at Game Stop and argued over who could kick whose ass in what game. When going back to the car and on the ride to the theater, Jean and Eren argued over every little conversation topic Armin calmly brought up, even when he tried to talk about the weather. Seriously—who argues about the weather?

“I seriously fucking hate you.”

“You can get out of my car at any time, douchebag.” Jean hummed, tapping his hands against the steering wheel while waiting for the light to turn green.

“Guys, please don’t fight.” Armin whimpered from the passenger seat.

Arms folded tightly over his chest, Eren mumbled irritably in the backseat of Jean’s car. He should’ve called and canceled, to tell Armin that he changed his mind; it was his own fault he was going to have to endure the asshole for the next two hours. And to make matters worse, he knew it was a planned date between Jean and Armin, and that Jean would probably try to be really “cute” with Armin, and kiss him and all that bullshit just so he could make Eren feel uncomfortable like the dick that he was.

“For you,”

“Whatever.” Eren mumbled.

“Thanks.” Armin sighed. He tapped his finger impatiently against his leg, staring at the red light that felt like it had kept the same color for hours. The tension building in Jean’s car was so thick it could be cut with a knife, and Armin really didn’t like thinking about the possibility of his best friend (who possessed anger problems) and his kind-of boyfriend (who had the tendency to be an ass to Eren) to get into a fistfight while on the road.

“Hey, Eren, lemmie ask you something?”

“No.” Armin shot a not-quite glare at Eren through the mirror and the dark haired teen sighed. “Fine, what is it?”

“How’re things going with Levi?”

The snapping sound of Eren’s nerves were almost audible and Armin cleared his throat loudly, hoping he’d be able to defuse the situation before Eren lunged between the two front seats and strangled Jean. “Oh, uh, hey, um, Eren! Wanna hear a joke? Or something? Wanna laugh? Please say yes, or no, that’s fine too, but—”

“I’m fine, Armin…” Eren sighed—almost growled—and ran a shaky hand through his hair. “Bad.”

“Sucks.”

Jean turned left and parked in the parking lot of the theater. The three teens exited the car and made a B-line through the parking lot to the line for the ticket booth, and were greeted by the dotted by crumbs, smiling face of their mutual friend Sasha Braus. She had a bag of potato chips with her behind the glass, and she waved her hands excitedly at the boys.

“Hi guys!”

“Hey Sasha,” They all replied almost simultaneously, returning her smile.

Jean told her the movie that the three of them were going to seeing and she munched on her chips, shoving handfuls into her mouth while counting the bills he handed her. Though Eren promised to pay his way, Jean insisted he pay for all three since Eren was Armin’s friend, Armin blushed, and Eren spat back that he wasn’t the one on a date with Jean, and for the asshole to let him pay his own way. It almost turned into a fight before Sasha, with a mouthful of chips, half-shouted “Boys, boys, you’re both pretty. You’re also lacking two bucks.”

Eren handed over two extra dollars, nearly shoving Jean out of the line when he tried to pay for him. When bumping shoulders with the shorter teen, Jean turned to look at Sasha through the window again. “Sasha, why are you eating potato chips on the job?"

“Are you asking me why people eat chips in general?” She snorted.

Eren and Armin laughed and Jean scratches the back of his head, then extended his arm with an annoyed look on his face. “Stop being a smartass and give me my tickets.”

“Here you are, sir. Enjoy your movie.”

-

Hanji lay back on her bed, giggling and looking through the apps and things Levi kept on his phone. She felt bad for taking it, but it was right there, and she would give it back next time she saw him, she told herself. Reading through his previous texts to this Eren person caused her to kick her feet up in delight, thinking what a cute relationship the two of them had.

Unintentionally being a stalker, she found herself looking through the pictures on his phone. “Poor guy should’ve locked his phone,” she hummed, scrolling through. Several pictures of the same tall brunette boy with turquoise eyes snagged her curiosity; he was cute. Each picture made her smile more than the last, finally finding one with both the boy and Levi.

While she scrolled, she wondered why Levi had no pictures of his girlfriend until she paused at one picture in particular; Levi with his arm around the taller boy, half embracing him, whilst the boy was kissing Levi on the side of his head. The light blush that showed on Levi’s cheeks was undeniably cute—yet so weird on him, Hanji thought—and in the background was a black haired girl looking at the camera with a “why are you taking this picture” look on her face.

“Oh…” Hanji murmured with an amused smile on her face. “So Eren is a boy… interesting.”

-

I could literally kill like forty people right now, Levi told himself as he made his way through the building. I swear to god, I am going to murder her. I will strangle her. What the fuck is her problem? He pushed passed a group of people to get to the desk at the main office. Thank god he knew Hanji’s name, or the process was sure to take an even longer amount of time.

“I need a room number.”

“Excusez-moi?”

“Zoe—Hanji’s room number.” Levi paused. “Nombre de dortoir? Hanji, Zoe?”

“Ah~ but of course, un moment.” The woman behind the desk nodded and pulled open a compartment under her desk filled with files. She went through them several times, Levi’s impatient sighs were ignored, and the woman looked back to him after shutting the compartment back into her desk. 

“Désolé, monsieur… Cette personne ne doit pas rester dans une chambre ici. Peut-être qu'elle réside da—” She cringed, trying her best to speak in English for him. Her French accent made it nearly impossible to understand what she was saying. “This person does not stay in a room here. Perhaps she is staying in an apartment complex?”

“Fuck.” With that as his ‘goodbye’ to the woman, he stormed off to the staircase and headed back to his own room. Mumbling ways he’d kill Hanji to himself, he threw open the door to his room and slammed it shut behind him in mere seconds. He stared around his room before sitting at his desk and booting up his laptop. “Eren, please, fucking be online. For the love of fuck, be online.” He was not. “Fuck my life.”

-

“See you, Eren,” Armin waved from the passenger seat of Jeans car when dropping the boy off at his house. “I’ll see you Monday!”

“See ya, Armin,” Eren shouted back, his back facing the boy as he made his way to the front door. He ignored Jean’s ignorant comments before the two drove off and Eren headed inside. “Mikasa, you home?”

No response.

“Well,” He sighed and sat back on the touch. It was only three thirty now—he realized that he had spent about six hour with Armin and Jean, only meaning to spend about two, but time seemed to get away. He pulled his phone from his pocket and turned it on, and as he waited for the tone signaling that it was fully on, he turned the TV on and searched for something to watch.

While flipping through channels, his phone buzzed once, indicating one new message that was probably pending arrival as his phone had been off before. He tried to ignore it while scanning the guide, but he remembered the last message he had read from Levi. _I miss you, babe._ Levi never called him babe, or anything other than Eren or shitty brat.

He picked his phone up and touched the screen so it would light up. One new text message from Levi. “He’s so persistent today…” With a smile, Eren read the message.

_“Eren”_

-

Hanji read over the messaged exchanged between Levi and Eren for the fourth time now. The first time she had read them was when she noticed Levi had left, his phone still sitting on the table beside his empty tea cup. Apparently, Levi wasn’t one to erase messages even if they were two weeks old.

Eren: Levi  
Levi: What.  
Eren: I really don’t want you to go  
Levi: It’s not your decision if I go or not. Besides. I already paid for it.  
Eren: Why didn’t you tell me about this sooner? I don’t even have time to react.  
Levi: Is an hour not enough time?  
Eren: You’re not funny.  
Levi: I’m fucking hilarious.  
Eren: Because you’re poop jokes are totally gold.  
Levi: *your  
Eren: I fucking hate tyops  
Eren: *typos  
Levi: You’re an idiot. You know that, don’t you Eren?  
Eren: Yeah but you’re dating this idiot, so doesn’t that mean you’re an idiot  
Levi: Shut up.  
Eren: You’re adorable when you get annoyed  
Levi: Shut the fuck up.  
Eren: But it’s true!  
Levi: You fucking brat. I told you to shut up.  
Eren: I’m sorry :(

Hanji snickered.

Eren: So I’ll be there to pick you up for the air porn in ten minutes.  
Eren: AIRPORT.  
Levi: You’re typos are great sometimes. And okay.

“These two are so cute,” Hanji hummed to herself, then sighed sadly when reaching the messages from the night before.

Levi: We’ll talk tomorrow. Sorry.  
Eren: K. Love you. 

Then the ones from this morning. 

Levi: We need to talk about last night.  
Eren: Give me ten minutes. 

Then all the messages Levi had sent him earlier.

Levi: Eren did you hang up on me  
Levi: Reply you little fuck  
Levi: Eren fucking Jaeger, pick up your fucking phone.  
Levi: Eren. Please. I’m sorry. Please fucking reply. Please.  
Levi: I miss you babe.  
Levi: Eren

Hanji sighed, letting each message sink in again (except the last two, since she had done that to play around a little). Levi and Eren’s relationship seemed to be at a sad little standstill. And they were so cute too! She was about to get up and track Levi down to give him his phone and apologize, when the phone began to buzz.

Hanji knew she would probably regret this, but she tapped “read now” anyway.

_“I miss you too. I’m sorry for hanging up on you. I love you.”_

Fuck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now let's talk about how Levi will kill Hanji.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More switching between Hanji, Levi, and Eren. And it's very clear as to what's up between Mikasa and Annie. Also, Erwin is in this chapter. ERWIN. Chapter 10-11 is when shit's gon' go down, ya'll.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a looooooooooot of dialogue. I'm tired. Bye.

Hanji stared down at the message. “Shit. Shit, shit, _shit._ ” She whimpered. 

She couldn’t not reply, though, after all: she had already thrown herself into the crossfire that is Eren and Levi’s relationship and given herself a front row seat to the carnage that she may end up creating by butting in. However, by butting in, she could attempt to fix things too. Really, she knew it wasn’t her job to fix the relationship between two gay boys, one of which she barely knew, and the other she had thought was a girl anyway. Should she reply with “I love you too”? No, she wouldn’t meddle that hard, she’d only fix things, and hopefully by the time she had class with Levi on Monday, he wouldn’t kill her (she totally doubted he’d be calm about the whole thing, though).

Forcing her thumbs against the keys, she replied. “Don’t be sorry.”

Eren and Hanji’s conversation went on for the next hour, her discomfort for the situation growing with every reply from the boy back in America. She had to keep telling herself that she was helping, though in all honesty she had no idea what Eren was going on about for most of the conversation. From the context of Levi’s texts to Eren earlier she was able to gather that Levi had done something wrong that resulted in Eren hanging up on him on Skype. Obviously she couldn’t ask what he did wrong, because Eren would only see it as Levi, and she didn’t want her ruse to be seen through and shot up so quickly even if it was a bad idea.

Levi (Hanji): Look Eren, I’d love to talk to you all night, but it’s almost 10 now and I’m tired.  
Eren: But you don’t have class tomorrow  
Levi: I know but I’m tired  
Eren: I’m sure the insomnia helps with that

Hanji cringed. At least she had something to go by now—Levi was a jerk, and he had insomnia; perfect. It was great practice for the acting career that she was not pursuing. 

Levi: I have things to do tomorrow. Homework.  
Eren: Your not one to procrastinate when it comes to homework. Is everything okay?  
Eren: *You’re  
Levi: What?  
Eren: I typoed. Anyway if your gonna go to bed I’ll leave you to it.  
Eren: Friggin phone. *You’re  
Levi: Okay  
Eren: Night. I love you

Sighing, Hanji opted not to reply. Maybe it’d be something Levi did? She hoped at least. She left Levi’s phone sitting on her pillow and she got up to shower.

-

Levi sat at his desk for almost two hours after getting back into his room, staring at the Skype window while waiting for Eren to get online. At last, he gave up, feeling bored, angry, annoyed, and just upset all together.

He lifted from his chair and pushed it back underneath his desk, walked to his bed and flopped down on it, face first into his pillow. He didn’t feel dirty or sweaty, or even unclean, and decided he’d shower in the morning before going out into town to find Hanji Zoe and kill her. 

Slowly, he rolled onto his side, now facing the wall, and sighed. Not like he’d be able to sleep well anyway, but he needed to try. Sighing, he shifted once more until he was on his back and he stared up at the ceiling. “This is fucking bullshit.” He grumbled. “When I find her, she’s dead. I swear to god…”

-

Eren had curled up into a ball on the couch, his phone clutched tightly in his hand. It’d been twenty minutes, and Levi hadn’t replied. It was what he was used to, and he was happy that they’d actually talked, but he wanted to talk even more. He missed Levi. He hated missing him as much as he did. It hurt. He’d describe it as receiving a jackhammer to his chest. Yeah, it hurt that bad.

The front door shutting loudly broke Eren from his daze and he sat up at the sound of Mikasa’s voice in the hall. “Eren, please tell me you’re up before five?” She called.

“I am,” He replied.

“Good. Say hi to Annie, I’m going to order pizza.”

“Annie’s here?” 

Before Eren could even finish saying the last word, the short blond walked through the doorway between the living room and front hall. She sat on the cushion to the left of Eren and nodded a “hello” to him.

“Hey,” Eren greeted.

“You look like a sleepy hell.” She propped her feet up on the coffee table and folded her arms over her chest.

“Thanks.” He mumbled.

From the kitchen, Mikasa called. “What do you guys want for toppings?”

The last few times Annie had come over to the Jaeger household and Mikasa ordered pizza, the three of them always agreed on peperoni. Eren and Annie silently glanced at each other before simultaneously shouting back their request.

“So, what’d you guys do today?”

Annie’s brows raised as though to ask if he really wanted to know. “Why?”

“I dunno; you were gone for like… the whole day.”

She shrugged. “We went to IHOP for breakfast and halved a pancake platter, then we went to the mall and we have like a million bags in the backseat of your car—Mikasa said after she ordered pizza she was gonna make you bring them out for us by the way. Anyway, after we left the mall we went to the library and studied a little for our Biology test that’s coming up—”

“You guys have a test coming already?”

“We’re in the honors class with Armin. Guess you weren’t aware of how much smarter we are than you?” She smirked.

“Shut up.”

“Anyway,” Annie continued. “After we finished studying, it was already passed three fourty, so we left.”  
Eren nodded. “Right, okay, then? It’s past five already. Then what’d you guys do?”

“None of your business, Eren.” Annie hummed, closing her eyes just as Mikasa slipped into the room.

“What’s none of his business?” She sunk down on the other side of Annie and half-lunged over the blond to grab the remote from her brother.

“What we did after we left the library.”

Mikasa laughed and shook her head as she went down the TV guide. “None of your business at all, Eren.”

“You say it like it’s some big deal like you were fucking or something.”

Both girls tried to hold back their laughter but they failed and it came out in hard cackles. Mikasa’s eyes had even begun to tear up but she shook it off without issue. “No, Eren. No. Go get the fucking bags from your car.”

Rather than arguing with two girls that even without teaming up on him could kick his ass, he obeyed and lifted from the couch, and left to go retrieve their bags from his car.

After they heard the door shut, Mikasa let out a light sigh before leaning her head against Annie’s shoulder. “He’s so annoying sometimes.”

“Brothers are the worst, I’m sure.” Annie snorted, turning her head slightly and planting a small kiss against Mikasa’s forehead.

-

“—So you really have no idea where this girl is?”

Levi glared straight into his webcam as though hoping telekinesis would kick in and Erwin would be set ablaze all the way back in America. “Erwin. All I could do was ask the fucking lady at the front. No, I don’t have the slightest idea where the fuck she is.”

“Hm…” The blond man hummed, shifting his gaze to the corner of his screen.

“The fuck do you mean ‘hm’?”

“Well, Levi, I honestly don’t know what to tell you. She has classes with you, you said, so just wait until Monday.”

“I _can’t_ wait until Monday, Erwin.”

“Yeah, I know, you need to talk to Eren. Have you tried sending him a message on Skype?”

“Oh, no, not at all Erwin, I wonder why I hadn’t fucking thought of that sooner.” Sarcasm laced Levi's tone deeply, but it didn’t satisfy the black haired man a single bit.

Letting out a sigh, Erwin’s eyes shot back up so Levi could see them. “Then wait until tomorrow. If he’s not online, then you wait until Monday and confront… Hanji?”

“That’s her fucking name, yeah.”

“Then you confront Hanji on Monday and get your phone back—”

“And murder her, don’t forget the murder.”

“—And then all will be right in the world of Levi.”

“Yeah.”

Erwin nodded, then raised his eyebrows slightly. “You do understand you can’t actually kill this woman, right?”

“I can.”

“Levi—”

“Hey, it’s eleven now, which means it’s like six there. So I’m going to try and sleep. You should go get some food or whatever it is you do at six o’clock.”

Erwin let out a small laugh and nodded. “Alright. Goodnight, Levi.”

“Night, asswad.”

Levi ended the call and groaned as he shut his laptop down. Erwin was absolutely no help what-so-fucking-ever in the matter, but Levi had figured as much before he had even gotten out of his bed the first time. He wasn’t even tired. Well he was, but he didn’t feel as though he had the energy to sleep, if that made any sense at all. Regardless, he forced himself up from his desk chair and walked over to his bed. 

He sat on the edge before laying his head on his pillow and curling up comfortably, though he didn’t stay like this long before stirring and stretching and tossing and turning a few times. He now lay with his right arm hanging off the side of his bed and his left arm draped over his forehead, his legs crossed at his ankles.

“God damn it, Eren.” He groaned, sadness was now his tone of choice. “I fucking miss you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *whispers* look how sassy Levi was. LOOK AT IT.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No. No summary. Just read. Go.

Sunday was a long, slow day that felt as though it would never come to an end. It was uneventful for Eren, who ended up hanging around the house with Mikasa and Annie all day. And by “with Mikasa and Annie,” that really meant “in his room playing videogames for about five hours until Annie went home”.

Not only was it dull for Eren, but for Levi as well. The short man had spent the day lazing around his room—the word lazing is used loosely, as he had been compulsively cleaning his already spotless dorm room for the majority of his time, reorganizing and dusting and spraying everything. He would occasionally glance over at his laptop to see if he got any messages from Eren, but he received none. None at all.

And with Hanji, well, the day was just as boring as hell, if that mattered to anyone.

-

 _9:45 p.m. Sunday; Paris, France_  
Levi (Hanji): What time is there, Eren?  
Eren: 4:45p.m. But it's 10 there? You have school tomorrow. Shouldn’t you be getting to bed soon?

Hanji nodded a this text, yawning as she curled up in her bed, using the glow of Levi’s phone as the only remaining light on the room.

Levi: I was just about to.  
Eren: Since it’s only 4 pm here I may sperm your phone

Hanji cackled, waiting for Eren to quickly send another text to correct himself. When he didn’t she assume he hadn’t noticed and she snorted and shook her head. “This kid is hilarious.”

Levi: You’ll what?  
Eren: What?  
Eren: OH MY GOD  
Eren: *SPAM  
Eren: FUCK.  
Levi: You’re a crazy little fucker.  
Eren: How did I not notice that?  
Eren: You should go to bed.

Hanji had finally managed to catch her breath.

Levi: You should read your replies more carefully. Goodnight, Eren.  
Eren: Goodnight, Levi.

 _10:03 p.m. Sunday; Paris, France_  
Eren: I know you’re sleeping now, I’m sorry.

10:14 p.m. Sunday; Paris, France  
Eren: I miss you.

 _10:29 p.m. Sunday; Paris, France_  
Eren: A lot.

 _11:18 p.m. Sunday; Paris, France_  
Eren: You think we could tak on Skype tomorrow?

 _11:19 p.m. Sunday; Paris, France_  
Eren: *talk

 _11:22 p.m. Sunday; Paris, France_  
Eren: Hope so :)

 _12:01 a.m. Monday; Paris, France_  
Eren: I love you, Levi. Sorry for spermming your phone.  
Eren: SPAMMING*

-

It was just passing 1 a.m. now, and Levi still hadn’t managed to get any sleep. He tossed, and turned, and groaned, and flipped his pillow, got up, remade his bed, got back in it, and pulled the covers over his head. He did this more than once. By the fourth time, he sighed, irritated at his compulsive need to make his bed (and everything else in the damn world) neat and clean, and looked to the clock to see that is was just about 1:45.

“Fuck this insomnia up the ass with a fucking box cutter.” He sat on his floor against his bed, glowering up at the alarm clock on the small dresser beside him. “Fuck this compulsive need to stay up and make everything neat. Fuck this fucking trip, damn it, Levi, why did you decide to fucking…” Levi had already begun regretting the decision to come to France in the first place. 

Despite how many people were around, he felt so alone. He didn’t have Erwin to act as a brother for him, to guide him through life and make everything seem calm. He didn’t have Petra, the petite little neighbor across the hall from him at the apartment he lived in, to invite him over on the past Holidays when he had nobody because Erwin was busy. And most of all, he didn’t have Eren here to tease, to bother, to slap, to kick, to hug, to kiss, to hold...

He felt as though he was going to scream, but he wasn’t one to do that. Instead, he pulled himself up and fell into bed, curling up on his left side and half-cuddling his pillow to his chest. It was Monday, and he was going to find Miss Hanji and beat the ever living hell out of her. He just needed to sleep, so that he could wake up, head to his classes, meet Hanji in the yard of the campus and grab her by that thick, brown ponytail she wore. Then, oh yes, then, he would force her down into the grass (after retrieving his phone from her, of course) and beat her into the dirt. Even if she cried—yeah, he knew she would—he wouldn’t stop. He was too pissed. Even if she was a girl. Even if it was morally wrong. Even if—

Fuck. No. He wouldn’t hit her. He wouldn’t be able to. And he hated the fact that all he’d be able to do was swear at her with every profanity that dotted his vocabulary. And, possibly, torture her if he had the means for it.

*

_7:15 a.m. Monday; Paris, France_

Waking up to the loud, incessant beeping of his alarm clock, Levi sat up with disheveled hair and dark shadows under his eyes that would tell anyone around him to “fuck off” today.

He did his business, showered, got dressed, and ate, and stared at his spotless room with an annoyed smile, “It could look better, but I don’t have time,” (as it was now 7:45) and he left with his bag for his Monday classes—and to find Hanji Zoe and destroy her very being. 

Living on campus made it fairly easy to get to the main campus quickly; it didn’t take long for Levi to set foot on the grass and immediately scan his surroundings for the tall brunette girl whom he wished to throw off of a building.

Failing to spot her, he groaned and balled his hands into tight fists and turned to head into the building for his first class—

“Rivaille! Oh, why’d you turn, I was gonna try and scare you!”

“You.” Levi snarled, staring into her face with a hellish burn emitting from his dark, piercing gray eyes. “ _GIVE_ me my phone right now or I swear to every deity and demon that I will kill you.”

Hanji cringed, looking down at the shorter man that threatened her. “I was gonna do that anyway—” she shoved her hand into the pocket of her sweatshirt and pulled his phone out. “I gather you’re angry?”

“I was planning on shoving those shitty glasses down the shithole you call a mouth.” He hissed, swiping the device from her hand. “Fuck you.”

“Sorry,” She didn’t seem as intimidated by his fearsome demeanor anymore, slouching slightly and shrugging her shoulders. “Didn’t think you’d get so ma—so you just walk away!?”

Levi ignored her annoying shouting and continued walking toward the building. He considered texting Eren, or maybe even calling him or something, but decided against it seeing as it was still so early back in America. His foot had just tapped against the stony steps of the building when his arm was tugged on and he was pulled off of the step.

“I swear to fuck, Hanji,” He seriously wanted to rip her head off. “I am in _no_ mood to deal with you, ever, ever again. So I suggest you—”

“Eren is sorry,” She whimpered. “For hanging up on you, I mean.”

A hell had opened up inside of Levi as the words that came from the taller woman registered. She talked to Eren. She talked to Eren about personal things. _She. Talked. To. Eren._

Turning and not giving a fuck about morals, he knocked her into the ground and stared down at her—receiving shocked looks from passing students as he did so—and had to restrain from launching a kick right into her throat. “You…”

“Yeah, I know! I’m a terrible person, I invaded your privacy, I’m sorry, Rivaille, but—”

“There’s no fucking ‘but’ about this, you shitwad.” He crouched down, debating whether or not he wanted to grab a fistful of that stupid brown hair and pull her back to her feet, or shove her glasses down her throat like he had threatened he would. “Why would you stick your nose in places where it doesn’t belong? Like my fucking relationship?”

Hanji just smiled at him, a genuine smile that told Levi she wasn’t frightened by his attitude even if she should be. “Exactly. I know it was wrong, and I’m sorry, but that Eren—”

“What do you _possibly_ have to say about him. You couldn’t possibly have talked to him much in two days—what did you say to him? What did you fucking say to him?”

“What’re you freaking out about!” She tried to hold back laughter, knowing it was inappropriate, but failed. “It’s not like I told the guy I—you—loved him—”

“Did you fucking _pretend_ to be _me_? Oh my god—you don’t even—I fucking hate you. I literally only know your name and I really want to fucking kill you. So badly. I could seriously fucking kill you _right now_.”

“I’m sorry.”

“You’re _sorry_.” Levi stood and stared down at her once more, stepping back and watching as she stood. “Oh, no. You’re not. You’re really not, not yet. But you _will_ be.”

His tone became colder than it had been, each word in the last sentence shooting an icy chill up Hanji’s spine.

-

Eren shot up, heart pounding as his alarm clock blasted up an all too familiar ring—no; it was his phone ringing, not his alarm clock. Squinting, stared at the glow across his room from his phone which he’d left on his computer desk. He yawned, scratched the back of his head, then debated laying back down. Nope. No chance of getting comfortable and it that state of mind; having that dream again. And with only three hours of sleep; Eren whimpered and rubbed his eyes.

“Who the fuck is calling me at 3 a.m....” He grumbled, pushing himself out of bed and stumbling tiredly over to his desk. Without look at the contact—the light on his phone was too bright for him to read directly off of it anyway—he answered. “Hello…?”

“Eren,”

The brunette teen nearly jumped at the voice. Yawning while he spoke, Eren moved back over to his bed. “Levi…? Why’re you calling me at three in the morni—”

“It’s that early there?” There was a muffled whine coming from somewhere near Levi, followed by: _ow, Rivaille, quit pulling my hair—ow!_ Levi sighed loudly into the phone, ignoring whoever Eren had heard, and spoke again. “Never mind; I’ll call you later. Go back to bed, you know you’re worthless when you’re tired.”

He hung up before Eren could say anything, and the boy didn’t really care. He just wanted to go back to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of a long chapter? Eh? Well. And oh, lemmie tell you: Hanji should've opted not to meddle in the affairs of a certain angry short man and his impressionable, idiot little boyfriend. Ehuehue.  
>  _I swear to god I love Hanji._


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mostly dialogue between Hanji and Levi, and then some between Mikasa and Eren. Time to find out how Levi will get back at Hanji.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look at me, writing in the wee hours of the morning, watching the sun rise... this is not how a human being is supposed to thing. Also... I listen to mostly unbearable music while writing this sometimes.

“He sounds adorable,” Hanji mumbled, rubbing the back of her head, sore from Levi jerking her head back by her hair multiple times while he was on the phone.

“Nobody asked you.” Levi massaged his temples after stuffing his phone into his pocket.

“We’re going to be late for class,” She told him in attempt to calm him down—being late was sure calming—and walked around him. 

He turned quickly and grabbed her by the sleeve of her shirt, yanking her back to his side and he growled. “You think you’re off the hook, don’t you?”

“You got your phone back,” She whimpered. Hanji had hoped he’d let her slide one way or another, but knew deep down in her soul that someone she barely knew would happily set her on fire for what she did if he wouldn’t get him sent to jail for murder. “What more do you want from me?”

-

“Eren, it’s time to get up.” Mikasa shook him gently. “You slept through your alarm cl—”

“Stop,” Eren groaned from underneath the blanket that he had pulled above his head hours before. “I’m not even sleeping.”

“Then get up,” She sighed, paused, then raised an eyebrow in curiosity. “Why are you awake and still in bed?”

“Because.” He replied flatly. His voice laced with exhaustion as he hadn’t slept since Levi had called him at 3o’clock in the morning.

Pulling the blanket off of her brother, Mikasa groaned loudly. “Well get the fuck up, Eren.”

“No.”

“Eren!”

“I’m staying home.” He grumbled, pulling the blanket back from her and wrapping it half-assly around himself while lying down.

“No you’re not.”

In attempt to tug the blanket back, Mikasa had her hands slapped away and Eren rolled over to face her, his eyes and the bridge of his nose the only visible features of his face beneath his blanket. His eyes were half open and slightly puffy from lack of sleep. “Yes I am. I feel like fuck.”

“You’ll feel even more like fuck if I have to tell you to get up one more time.” She growled and ripped the blanket from his grip. “Now get up. I’m serious; you can’t afford to miss any classes today.”

Eren groaned and sat up, bed-headed and groggy eyed. She was right, as he was barely a high C (to the occasionally low B) average student, and he sighed. “Yeah, okay, whatever, I’m up. Happy?”

“Get dressed.”

“Will you make me breakfast?” He pushed himself from his bed and he drug his feet while walking to his closet.

“I’ll toast you a pop-tart.” She replied before walking out of his room and shutting the door behind her.

-

As their second lecture was brought to a close, Hanji began to fidget in her (forcibly chosen by Levi) seat. She felt uncomfortable, those narrow grey-blue eyes digging aggressively into the side of her head when she would write down notes. Levi had made Hanji sit beside him in the lecture hall because, one: he wanted to torture her; two: distracting her was the best way to do so during a class day; three: his silent stares of hatred did the trick perfectly, but only at close range for someone who didn’t know him personally.

She scribbled down the last spoken word and stood, slamming her pen on the table while the last few people exited the room. Turning to look down at Levi, who was still seated and looking almost relaxed, she cringed. “Did you really have to stare at me the whole time?”

“Were you uncomfortable?” He glanced up at her, almost sounding amused.

“Yeah!”

“Then yes.”

Hanji sighed and messily placed her notes inside of the grey folder, and then tossed it into her bag. Levi sneered at her disorderly tactics and he stood after organizing his own materials and placing them in his bag.

“So you seriously hate me?” She asked, following him out the door—not on her own accord, it was the only exit—then slipping beside him when they were in the hallway.

“Not sure how clear I can be on that, shit-for-brains.”

“And staring at me all during the lecture—”

“I’m knocking your focus down, because I can tell by your attitude how important this is to you. The less focused you are, the worse you will do, and the worse notes you will write, leading to your downfall during exams.”

“Ass,” It was but a mere hiss under her breath. “I’ll make more friends, I’ll study with them.”

“Oh? You need not worry about that being my _only_ means of revenge, Zoe.”

“ _Hanji_.” She whined.

“Yeah, no, I’m not going to call you that until you earn the privilege back.”

She groaned, rolled her eyes, and pushed the door open; stopping dead in her tracks when he walked right out in front of her and didn’t hold the door for her when he was outside. “So, other means of revenge? What the hell?”

“I’m very upset with you.”

“Yeah, I get that. But what did you mean?”

“Since you don’t live on campus, keeping you from your studies won’t be easy for me. But as I said, I have other means. I’m going to get you back.”

“Jeez, why don’t you just make me your indentured servant or some stupid shit like that; make it easier on yourself.” She meant for it to be a joke, but as the words left her mouth she knew she had made a mistake by saying it, especially when Levi’s eyebrows rose in content thought.

“Then it’s settled.”

“I’m not working for you for seven years.” 

“I wouldn’t want to be around your fucking self for seven years. But no, you being my servant is a great idea. How well do you clean?”

“What?”

“And you will cook for me, too.”

“Um—”

He removed his backpack and shoved it in her arms which, to her surprise, which was quite heavy like her own, but she kept a tight hold on it and dared not to drop it after he said: “If you drop that and dirt gets on it, I’ll break both of your legs.”  
Hoping to defuse the situation by making a joke, and showing him that his threat would cause his own educational downfall, she remarked slyly and with a smirk, “If you break my legs, how will I carry your things to class?”

“You’ll walk on your hands and carry my bag on your head. You’d balance it with the poise and grace of a lady—the qualities you should try to obtain soon.”

“Damn.” She grumbled, following him across campus—not even meaning to, just following him because… well, she didn’t know where else to go. “I’m not a pack mule,”

“You might as well be,” Levi snorted.

“Well why not just make me carry your stuff in my mouth?” She spat back, shifting his bag to her left arm and adjusting her glasses with her right hand.

“Because you’d fucking drool on it, and that’s disgusting as fuck.”

“Don’t tell me; you’re afraid of cooties?”

Levi shot a glare at her, folding his arms and shaking his head as though thinking about what an idiot she was. “Don’t be ridiculous, idiot.”

“But a germaphobe?”

“Stop talking and open the door.”

Looking up and away from Levi, she saw he had led her to the small café down the street from the college campus. Her hands were full, but just standing there awkwardly with an angry short man whom she was clearly at the disposal of waiting for her to do as she said, she pushed the door open with her free hand and watched as he walked in front of her.

They sat at a small table in the corner and Hanji set his bag down on the floor—which she soon realized was a big-ass mistake when he shot an icy glare at her, and she flung it up onto the table. “Sorry.”

“Go buy me tea.” He pulled his phone from his pocket to examine what time it was—and no doubt check if he could call Eren (he couldn’t).

“You’re kidding.”

“Did I fucking stutter?”

“Okay, okay! Hostile much,” She mumbled, and held her hand out to him. He didn’t even look up. “You’re gonna make me pay, too?”

“You owe me,” He said plainly, adding a shrug with his words. “You have four dollars on you, I’m sure.”

“Oh, right, yeah, sure.” She mumbled, pulling her bag around from her back and setting it in her lap, unzipping the front pocket and pulling looking in it for quarters that would meet the equivalent for “four dollars” in the currency. “You sure you don’t want me to buy you a fuckin’ desert platter while I’m at it?”

“Watch your tone with me. I just may make you do that if you’re going to bitch and moan the whole time. Tea is fine.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, Chapter 12 will have some Levi/Eren talk. Just telling ya' so you don't get frustrated with waiting for some coupley stuff. And also, some humor from Hanji, even though at this point she should keep her mouth shut.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cute chapter. Mhm.

As the two boys sat at their desks, Armin turned to continue the conversation they were having on the way to first period. “He called you at three in the morning?”

“That’s what I said, Armin.”

“Damn. What’d he want?”

“I honestly have no idea. I was kind of… you know, half asleep?” Armin nodded and Eren continued. “He said he’d call me back later because I’m useless when I’m tired.”

Armin watched as his best friend yawned and laid his head flat on his desk, arms stretched out and hands dangling over the front of it. “Yeah, you kind of are.”

“Thanks. Anyway, after he called, I couldn’t get back to sleep.”

“What time did you go to bed?”

“Around twelve…”

“Eren…” The blond sighed and sat back in his seat, drumming his fingers against his other arm. “You only got three hours of sleep then.”

“Yeah.”

“Well, class is gonna be fun as hell for you today.” Armin sighed and turned in his seat to face the front. “So if you pass out, you expect me to cover for you right?”

“I won’t pass—” Eren yawned. “—out.”

“Mhm, but if you do?”

“Yes please.”

And despite his exhaustion, the three hours he had didn’t weigh him down in class any more than the normal seven and a half did. He didn’t fall asleep, thankfully, and to Armin’s (and his own) surprise, he was very alert up until lunch.

They sat together as they always did at the table that their group had taken as their own. After lunch, Armin would go off with Annie and Mikasa to Honors Biology while Eren was forced to endure an hour with Jean in their normal Biology class. Then, the three boys would meet up with Connie and they would head off to P.E., be greeted by Bertl and Reiner, change, and do whatever strenuous activities had been planned for them to do before going home.

And that’s exactly how the rest of the day went, except Eren took a seven minute nap on the bench in the weight room when the rest of the boys had filed out to run laps. Armin came back in after the realization hit that Eren was not with the rest of them, woke the taller boy up, and snuck him into the lap portion without being caught and told to do double for “skipping out” on class—which he hadn’t really done (intentionally).

After taking turns at the sinks to wash the sweat from their faces, make themselves smell better, and change out of their gym clothes and into what they had on before, Eren, Armin, and Jean parted from the other three boys and walked out into the parking lot with their bags and stood by the fence separating the concrete lot from the grassy field that the school used for special events. They always got out of gym a few minutes early, but stood around and waited for the bell to sound, indicating the day was over and that they could all go home.

Eren leaned against the fence and hung his head while yawning. “Today felt way too long.”

Jean had his arm around Armin and was looking over the blond to Eren. “Tired?”

“All day,”

“He didn’t sleep well last night,” Armin informed the tallest of the three.

“Oh.” Jean nodded casually.

The bell sounded after a few moments of silence between the boys, and Jean and Armin parted from Eren with small waves as they went off to Jean’s car—Armin used to alternate between Eren and Mikasa giving him ride, and his grandfather, but now that he and Jean were a couple, he more than often went with Jean. And so Eren stood there by himself, waiting for Mikasa to join him so they can leave. Finally, she did join him, and they exchanged minor chit-chat during the drive home.

“How was the test in biology?” Eren turned to ask his sister from the passenger seat, sleepy eyes trying to stay alert but failing slightly.

“It was easy.”

“Honors, though?”

“It was _easy_.” Mikasa repeated.

“I’d imagine so, with all the studying you and Annie did.”

Mikasa bit the inside of her cheek and turned onto their street, keeping her eyes on the road and away from her brothers’ stare. “Mhm.”

She parked and took the key from the ignition and the two teens got out of the car. Mikasa was the first to the door, Eren following tiredly behind her, and she stepped inside and was greeted by an aroma emitting from the kitchen. Confused at first, but then a bright grin graced her face and she dropped her bag on the hall floor before bolting into the kitchen. Eren had just entered the house when Mikasa stepped inside of the kitchen, and the boy’s ears were filled with a shriek of joy from his sister.

“Dad!”

“Dad?” Eren’s eyes widened and he dropped his bag beside Mikasa’s and followed the black-haired girls’ actions by running into the kitchen after her.

Stopping in the frame of the door, Eren stared across the kitchen to smile at the sight of Mikasa hugging their father. He nearly knocked the two of them over to embrace the man as well.

“It’s good to see you two, too!” Grisha chuckled. “How are things? I’m sorry I couldn’t check in before.”

“They’re good,” Eren and Mikasa spoke at once, glancing at each other then back to up at their father.

“How good?” He asked, releasing them and turning back to the stove.

Mikasa spoke before her brother could open his mouth (which would normally be shocking, but Eren was quite tired). “Very. How was the trip?” it was just what Eren wanted to ask so he didn’t shoot her any rude looks.

“It was… pleasant.” Grisha had to pause to find the word, then added a pause. “Rainy.”

“It rained a lot?” Eren asked.

“The whole time.”

“Sorry. What’re you cooking?”

Mikasa elbowed the brunette teen and smiled at Grisha again. “Good time or bad?”

“Despite the weather, it was nice. How was school?”

-

“Why won’t he fucking answer me?” Levi was so tempted to throw his phone across his bedroom. With a sigh, he turned to Hanji who was sitting on the floor beside his nightstand scanning her notes accessibly. “The fuck are you doing?”

“You told me to sit, so I did. You didn’t tell me what to do after I sat, so I’m studying.” She didn’t even look up from her notes. Her backpack sat in front of her, papers and folders and pencils laid out in front of her, making a fucking mess.

Levi cringed. “I hope you plan on picking all of that up. No, actually, do it now. It’s taking up too much space.”

“It’s not,” Hanji mumbled, pushing her glasses back up the bridge of her nose and biting the inside of her lip while reading the last scribble she managed on her note page.

“It is, now pick it the fuck—” His phone suddenly began to vibrate and he stopped midsentence to look down.

“New text message from Eren”

“Fina-fucking-ly!”

-

It was only after Grisha told Mikasa and Eren that he’d be back in an hour or so, he had to take a trip to the bank and then the post office, which Mikasa offered to go with him that Eren took his phone out and finally took it off of silent. His father told him to turn the oven off in about thirty minutes… maybe fourty? Whatever he said, or whatever was in it—Eren wasn’t really paying attention, slipping away from consciousness in the kitchen as he had been trying not to do at school all day—would burn and it wouldn’t be good to eat.

The door shut behind his father and sister and he pulled his phone from his pocket to see he had three texts from Levi, all saying pretty much the same thing.

_Levi: When you get home, get on Skype._

_Levi: Get on Skype, I know you’re home._

_Levi: Hurry up you fuck._

Eren couldn’t help but smile despite the crudeness of his boyfriend, and he replied with a simple “OK” before heading into his bedroom. He sighed slightly, seeing his laptop was still on, and he signed in to Skype. He had a few pending messages from other contacts that he would read later, and then his eyes looked to Levi’s name and saw how many pending messages he had from him, the oh-so pleasant sound of a Skype call waiting to be answered filled his room.

He answered.

“Levi, I missed—”

“Yeah, no, hold on, shut up for a second.” Levi interrupted and reached off screen and out of Eren’s view, then leaned back in his chair with a fistful of brown-hair, jerking a girl up from the floor. “Explain to him, you shit.”

Eren felt his heart drop, assuming the worst and jumping to conclusions as he always did. “Levi—”

“Hi—Eren, right?” The girl pulled her hair from Levi’s grip and looked into the webcam, staring face to face with Eren (kind of).

“Who’re you?” His voice was shaky and he cringed, shrinking back in his chair.

“My name is Hanji, and I’m—”

“An asshole.”

“Let _me_ do this.” Hanji whined. “Um, okay, so… Saturday, I met Levi in this cute little café down the street from our university. Aaaand,” She glanced at Levi, then back to the webcam. “Long story short, I stole his phone and I’ve been texting you for the past two days. Not him.”

Eren blinked while that all set in. He was surprised that he wasn’t actually angry, which he knew he had every right to be. Really, he was just happy that this girl wasn’t with Levi for the reason he had assumed just moments ago.

“And I’m really sorry; I know it was wrong of me to do that.” Hanji said after a moment of silence. “I hope you can forgive me.”

He just remained silent and Levi told Hanji to sit back down and study or “whatever the fuck it is you want to do as long as you don’t make a mess” and clarified that she wasn’t allowed to leave until he said she could.

“So,” Levi turned back to the webcam after Hanji was back by the nightstand, narrow eyes scanning Eren’s sleepy face. “You look tired.”

“I am.”

“You went back to bed after I called, right?”

“I tried.” Eren yawned.

“Oh.” There was a long pause, then Levi sighed. “Hey, Eren, I’m sorry.”

“Nah, it’s fine, don’t worry about it. Nobody could really tell that I was tired—”

“No, that’s not what I meant. I’m sorry about hanging up on you, and saying that I said because it’s not what I meant. I wasn’t thinking when I said it, and I panicked and I made an ass of myself and I really am sorry.”

Eren smiled. Though the first apology was just a text, and from this Hanji person no less, actually hearing it from Levi made him feel so much better. About everything. “It’s okay.”

“Is it really?”

“Yeah. And I’m sorry for hanging up on you about that. I got all emotional.”

“You didn’t cry, did you?” Levi meant this as a joke, but when he saw the solemn look on Eren’s face that mixed with his exhaustion, he just scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “Sorry.”

Hanji spoke up from her place off screen. “Hey, Levi, can I—”

“No, whatever it is, no. Whatever it is, you can wait.”

“No I can’t.”

Eren listened as they shot back and forth. “Yes, you can, now shut the fuck up.”

“I have to pee, though! Unless you want to clean that off your floor.”

“Oh my god, that’s fucking disgusting.” Levi ran his hand through his hair and sighed in frustration. “Whatever, just go.”

Hanji hopped off and shot toward the bathroom. When the door shut, Levi let out a groan. “Eren, she’s worse than you. She’s so annoying.”

“Why is she even there?” Eren half-laughed, half-yawned.

“Because if I murder her, I’ll go to prison, and I’ll never see you again.”

Eren felt his cheeks heat up and he blinked. “Aw.”

“And I can’t torture her because—what do you mean ‘aw’?”

“I dunno, it was… kinda sweet how you said that.”

“I was really pissed. Still am.”

“I get that, but,” Eren smiled. “Never mind. How was your day?”

“Long and lecturey.” Levi mumbled.

“Lecturey isn’t a word.”

“Oh, are you an English major or something, asshole?” Eren laughed and Levi’s lips twitched up slightly in the corners of his mouth. “And what about your day?”

“I was tired.”

“Yeah, I got that. I can see by the look on your face that you’d rather be sleeping than talking to me.”

“That’s not true.” Eren mumbled. He bit the inside of his bottom lip, looking away from his webcam, and sighed. “I’d stay up all night if it allowed me to talk to you.”

This time, Levi actually did smile. It wasn’t a big smile, and it didn’t last long because Hanji exited the bathroom just as he did it. He ignored her presence and when she sat back down, he spoke again, keeping his eyes on Eren. “But you’re useless when you’re tired.”

“Doesn’t mean I wouldn’t try to be up for you.”

“You’re adorable.” Hanji spoke up from off screen and giggled. Levi shot her a look and the giggle only got louder. “Well it’s true! Both of you are, I mean, do you hear yourselves? You sound like a couple—”

“I can’t fucking imagine why.” Levi spat at her. He was annoyed now. “Go make me some food, shitty glasses.”

 _Food_. Eren gasped and stood suddenly. “Fuck—I’ll be right back!”

Without waiting for a response from Levi, Eren ran from his room and through the hall into the kitchen. The scent of burning meat assaulted his nostrils as he jerked the door to the oven open, and his vision was fogged up by smoke. He waved his hands around in front of him, waiting for the smoke to clear before he grabbed a potholder and pulled the burnt meal out and set it on the counter. 

Whatever it was, he really couldn’t tell now.

“Shit…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mhmmm, there be da Grisha.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grisha takes Eren and Mikasa out since Eren pretty much ruined dinner, and some things are said. Also, another character makes somewhat of a cameo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, during the course of writing this chapter, i was listening to an OST/Battle Theme (?) from Pokemon X/Y; BW Emotion Theme. I think it's N's theme or something? I wasn't aware he was in the game. Anyway, it's a nice, peaceful piano tune that kept me focused on getting this chapter done before Halloween so that i could work on other shit. Just a suggestion that you listen to it, if you want, or not, doesn't matter.

“Do you want me to heat you up some ramen?”

“No.” 

“Mkay.” 

Levi glanced back at his monitor, seeing Eren was not back yet, and turned back in his chair to face Hanji again. She had her phone in her left hand, thumbing the keys furiously, and her notes slightly crumpled in her right. “What’re you doing?”

“Nothing.” She set her phone down on her knee and looked back to her notes and skimmed through them a few more times in the silence of Levi’s room before her phone light up again.

He watched as she picked it up and her eyes light up almost like the small device had seconds ago. A small smile graced her face and she laughed hard, happily, putting her notes down and using both hands to hit the keys to reply. “You look too happy to be doing nothing.”

“Sorry?” She didn’t even look up.

Annoyed, Levi swiped the small device from her hands and read what she was typing. His eyes narrowed and he shot her a sharp glare, which was responded to with nervous laughter. She tried to reach and grab it back from him but he only shoved her back down and proceeded to go through her messages. It wasn’t wrong, no, not at all. She’d done the same thing, so it was just a “what goes around comes around” situation. That’s how Levi saw it, anyway.

Mike: How was your day?  
Hanji: Bad  
Mike: Why  
Hanji: Angry shorty  
Mike: what happened?  
Hanji: Eh he’s just getting back at me for something I did. I thought he would just shoot back friendly fire, and now I’m like his personal foot stool or something.  
Mike: foot stool. Because he’s short. Ha ha.  
Hanji: Exactly. He wants me to get him food now  
Mike: poison his food. Put laxatives in it.  
Hanji: I don’t have any

Levi threw her phone back at her and looked back his monitor. Still no Eren. Sighing, he turned back to Hanji once again and shot a second glare at her. “Who’s Mike?”

“None of your business.”

“It’s four hundred and twenty-seven percent my business,” He growled. He really didn’t care, but any information he could use to make Hanji miserable would be helpful.

“He’s my friend.” She glared at him through her glasses but the look softened soon after and she finished her reply to Mike before speaking to Levi again. “Best friend.”

Honestly, Levi didn’t care. Nothing of use, and really, he wasn’t going to sink to Hanji’s level and bother some stranger for his own amusement. He turned back to his monitor once more just to be greeted by Eren’s empty chair. He let out a sigh. “What the fuck is taking him so long?”

-

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” Eren repeated, shrinking back as Mikasa examined the burnt what-the-fuck-ever-it-was on the counter.

“Eren just hush,” She groaned and turned to Grisha. “Yeah, I don’t think it’s edible anymore.”

Grisha sighed and leaned against the frame of the doorway between the hall and the kitchen. With a shake of his head, he just smiled at the two teens. “It’s not a problem. How about I take you two out to eat?” Both their eyes lit up. It had been quite a while since they’ve gone out somewhere to eat, and with their father no less. They nodded like excited children on Christmas day and Grisha laughed. “Alright, go get ready. I’ll clean up in here.”

Mikasa shot Eren a look of “you fucked up in a good way” before zipping off to her bedroom to get a different shirt on—the plain black t-shirt she was sporting at the moment didn’t make her look very ladylike; not that she cared, but going out was rare, and she wanted to look nice no matter where they went.

Eren went to his own bedroom to change his shirt as well, seeing as he had spilled something from lunch on it and hadn’t noticed it until now, and began looking through his closet. He didn’t hear Levi on his monitor, and didn’t notice that he was still in a Skype call before he stripped out of his old shirt and took a nice, deep blue one off of a hanger. He turned his back to his closet, about to pull the shirt over his head, and saw Levi staring at him from his laptop. Eren’s face flushed red and he acted like a shy schoolgirl, covering himself with his shirt instead of actually putting it _on_.

“The hell are you doing? Put it on, idiot.” Levi half-laughed. “You forget we were on video?”

“Apparently,” Eren mumbled sheepishly, quickly pulling his shirt over his head and pushing his arms through the sleeves. “Hey, dad’s home and he’s gonna take me and Mikasa out so—”

“I get it,” Levi nodded and he looked away from the monitor for a second, glancing at Hanji off screen (who wasn’t paying attention), and then looked back to Eren. “Still doesn’t know, huh?”

“Nope.” Eren walked toward his laptop. His fingers graced the touchpad and he smiled back to Levi, the embarrassment passing (not like Levi’s never seen him shirtless). “I’ll talk to you when I get back. I mean if you can—”

“Shoo, go.” Levi interrupted him, waving his hands left and right as he spoke. “You’re keeping everyone waiting. If you’re back before seven, your time, then call me back. Go; off with you.”

Eren snorted. “Alright, okay, I’m going. Bye—“ He didn’t think about it. “—love you,”

Levi hesitated, but the calm, gentle look on Eren’s face pushed any tension away. “You too.” His response was followed by a mild whimper of delight—or shock? Maybe shock—from Hanji who was still off screen.

 _That was it, wasn’t it? He almost said it…_ The brunette boy just smiled and waved his cursor over the end call button. With a “see ya,” he ended the call and signed out of Skype. 

He turned his back to the monitor and let out a small, whimper-like sigh. Levi nearly said the words that had pretty much been the cause of their entire conflict, and Eren didn’t know if he should be happy or not. Either way, he was flustered; his cheeks flushed bright red and his lips kept twitching into a cute-yet-unnerved smile. He was brought back into reality by a sharp yell form Mikasa outside his door telling him to hurry the hell up.

-

“Did you just—” Hanji nearly gasped.

“Shut up.”

“—But you told him—”

Levi hissed at the brunette woman, glaring at her fiercely. “I said shut up.”

“But you said—”

“Hanji. Shut. Up.”

“You called me Hanji!”

“What part of shut up do you not understand?”

“Do you even realize what you just said to him?”

“Oh my god, shut _up_.” Levi groaned. “If you were a guy I would punch you right in your fucking mouth right now.”

Hanji clapped her hands together and bounced in her corner, giggling with amusement. “You told him you—”

“Get the fuck out.”

She paused. “I can go?”

“That’s what ‘get the fuck out’ means, so get the _fuck_ out.”

Hanji began packing all of her things back into her bag with a smug grin sticking to her face. “So then you don’t want me to get you anything to eat?”

“I’m sure it would be shitty anyway.”

“Is that a laxative joke?” Hanji snorted.

Levi pointed toward his door, the serious look on his face mixed with a mood that could be only be described as deadly. “Get. _Out._ ”

“See you tomorrow, Rivaille!” She hummed nervously, quickly shuffled out of his bedroom.

After Hanji was gone for over a minute, Levi let out a long, overdue sigh and began reorganizing his room—as Hanji had touched nearly everything she saw when she entered earlier—and remade his bed for the third time, annoyed when even the smallest of wrinkles remained on his blankets. “Fuck it.” He mumbled before tearing the blanket from his mattress once more, then stuffing it tightly in each corner to the point that getting under it at night would be quite annoying and probably suffocating and tight. 

It was 9:30 now, and he had nothing to do. He and Hanji had done their assignments while waiting for Eren to get home; he had already showered that morning and still carried the scent of soap and shampoo; and it was already too late to leave the campus—their university had a strict curfew of 9:15 for those inhabiting the dorms—to go down the little café, or something, to get something to eat. 

Levi sighed and went into his small pantry, taking the gallon of milk he had forced Hanji to buy him earlier out of his mini-fridge, and a bowl, and poured himself some cereal. Sitting there in the silence of his room, he wondered how many other college students spent their nights eating bowls of cereal because they hadn’t eaten because they wanted to talk to their boyfriends across the ocean. _Probably a small number_ , he thought.

-

Laughter erupted from the table occupied by Grisha and his two children. He told them a few funny things that happened while he was on call out of state, some people he met, some crazy things he’d seen. Mikasa told him about her teachers and how much she liked them and the classes, and how well Eren seemed to be doing in his fourth period class—when asked what that was, Mikasa jokingly snorted out “lunch”. Eren rolled his eyes, a smile showing how he enjoyed the family time despite Mikasa’s teasing, and added on, contributing whatever he could to keep the laughter going.

Their food arrived—just burgers and fries, as the restaurant was just a step over fast food, chosen by Eren and Mikasa—and they ate, leisurely chatting about anything and everything.

“So, who flirted with you while you were gone?” Mikasa poked at Grisha before chomping down on her burger.

“What?” The man smirked and laughed. “Nobody, nobody. I was too busy for that—or to notice if anybody had. You little gossip.” He paused, then his expression softened into a smile as he turned the question on them. “And what about you two? Any boyfriends or girlfriends I should know about?”

“Well, I’m pretty sure Eren’s in love—” Mikasa cut herself off and brought her drink up, sipping Dr. Pepper through the straw and glancing at Eren nervously as she did so.

Her brother just got silent and stared back; jaw hung half open, looking at Mikasa as though she had just shot someone. Grisha’s eyebrows rose and he began to pry. “Oh? Do tell; what’s her name, Eren?”

“Er—dad, hey, forget I said anything.” Mikasa offered, nearly choking on her soda.

Eren shrunk back in his seat, staring at the golden fries sitting before him. _Why. Fucking why. Dad I really didn’t want to talk about this. Not yet. Not here. Not now._

“Oh, come on, Eren. Tell me. I’m curious—who is she? What’s her name? Have I met her yet? Is it that Annie girl? Or the one that works at the movie theater?”

“No…”

Mikasa’s expression hardened and her eyes seemed darkened and displeased—mostly with herself—and she mouthed an apology to her brother before taking another sip of her drink.

“Hm?” Grisha hummed.

“It’s neither of them… it’s not—I mean…” Eren sighed. _Oh fucking well_. “I’m not dating a girl.”

Their table grew silent. There was no eye contact; it was almost so quiet that their breathing could be heard if not for the chit-chat emitting from the tables around them.

“What?” Their father finally spoke. His voice had lost the cheerful and lively tone it possessed only seconds ago.

“His name is Levi…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *light sigh* I should work on other things now.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Returning home from awkward dinner in awkward silence of an awkward car ride was awkward. Then some fighting. Then perfect boyfriend Levi being perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ANGRYISH DIALOGUE AND SOME LEVI STORY TIME.

Dinner was Eren’s least favorite thing in the world right now. He stared at his lap, heart pounding, anxiety rising. _Why isn’t he saying anything? That makes it worse._ Eren looked to his sister for help or anything that would make the tension and awkward silence vacate their table. Mikasa did nothing but stare back at him, biting on the inside of her cheek as she did when she was worried about something.

“I see…” Grisha mumbled.

And that was all that was said all through dinner. The three of them finished their meals before paying and filing uncomfortably out of the restaurant. They poured into Grisha’s car, Eren insisting silently that he take the backseat, and the drive home was awkwardly silent.

They had returned home at 6:50, the sound of the front door’s lock unclicking was all Eren wanted to hear at this moment, and when he did, he nearly shoved Mikasa out of the way to go to his room. He felt eyes digging into his back and knew he was being followed down the hall.

“Eren,” Grisha called after him as the boy placed his hand on the knob of his door. Eren didn’t turn to face his father, nor did he respond. Grisha continued. “How long?”

Eren’s teal eyes trailed across his arm to the door, debating whether or not he should answer. When he didn’t, Grisha spoke again.

“Eren Jaeger, answer me. How long?”

“How long what?” Eren nearly whimpered, pushing the words out. He wasn’t scared of this conversation; he knew it would come. He just didn’t know it would come so quickly.

“How long were you planning on keeping this from me? How long have you been with this Levi?”

Ignoring the first question, his answer to the second was barely above a whisper. “Almost five months.” He turned the knob and pushed his door open. “Why does it matter?”

“Because I need to know,” Grisha replied, stepping toward his son. “As your father, it’s my right. How long were you going to keep this from me, Eren?” He repeated.

Eren cringed and flinched at the sudden tug at his right shoulder. He turned his head to look at his father whose stern expression seemed a bit too harsh for the situation. “Until I was ready.”

“Ready to what? Come out of the fucking closet?” The words were like acid.

“To tell you—” Eren jerked forward, pulling his shoulder from his father’s grip and turning to face the man. “—about him.”

“And how long would that have been, hm? Eren, do you know how hard this is to take?”

“It shouldn’t be that hard, I mean, oh my god—” Eren didn’t want to get all worked up, but he felt Grisha was making a bigger deal out of this than he needed to. “—I’m not the only gay you’ve ever met—”

“Shut up, don’t call yourself that. Eren, you’re not—”

“I am—”

“No, you’re just confused…” It nearly came out as a growl and Grisha stepped back from his son.

“Confused? Dad I’m not conf—why’re you moving back? What; are you fucking afraid you’re gonna catch some kind of fucking disease from me? You don't catch gay, dad.” He hissed.

“Eren Jaeger! You do not use that type of language with me! Shut your mouth right now and listen—”

Eren cut him off again. “Stop telling me to shut up! Why does it even matter to you if I’m this way? It’s not your problem, and I really like him—”

“Eren, this is not right, it’s downright disgust—”

The brunette teen burst out into a fit of slightly deranged to throw his father off, his eyes tearing up from shear rage before he huffed out his response. “Disgusting? Is that it? You think it’s disgusting that I found someone that likes me, and I like him back but it’s disgusting just because he’s a he?!”

“It isn’t right!”

They were having a shouting match now. Eren was on the brink of shoving his father away, and Grisha was near the edge of just slapping Eren for his outbursts. Mikasa sat silently in her room on the other side of the house, trying to drown the yelling out with music blasting through her headphones while she did her homework, regretting ever bringing it up in the first place. She knew going out and attempting to intervene would only make things worse for all of them, especially Eren.

“Who the fuck are you to say what’s right and what _isn’t_ right?!”

“I am your father, Eren! And you will respect me what I have to say about the matter, and you will not speak to me that w—”

“You wanna fuckin’ know something dad?”

“What, Eren? What the fuck _is_ it?”

They were both fuming, and Eren brought out the lowest possible blow he could at this point. “Mom would’ve supported me wholeheartedly.”

The entire house became silent for a moment. Grisha’s expression began to soften while Eren’s remained the same. Finally, after some time, the man spoke again, though he was only able to manage one word. “Eren…”

“Don’t give me this crap anymore, dad.” Eren murmured, stepping back and preparing himself to shut the door in his father’s face. “I guess you don’t love me like mom did.”

He slammed his bedroom door shut before Grisha could open his mouth to respond, and locked it quickly after doing so. Turning his back to his door, he felt himself starting to cry. What kind of cry—angry or sad? Either way; upset, and he ignored the warm tears that burned his eyes. He wanted to throw something. He wanted to break something. He wanted to punch something. He wanted to talk to Levi. 

Pulling his phone out of his pocket to see what time it was, it was just now hitting seven ten. He sighed and sat on the edge of his bed, biting his lip as he hit _call_ on Levi’s contact. Holding the phone to his ear, Eren counted the rings until they halted abruptly, and following their silence was an annoyed greeting.

“I was expecting you ten minutes ago.”

“Sorry…”

“Whatever, Ere—hey, are you crying?”

Eren whimpered out a “yes” before shoving his face into his pillow and turning sideways, not caring if his tears rolled onto the screen of his phone.

“You wanna tell me what happened, or do I need to hop on a plane and kill someone?” he paused. “You know I can’t do that, so you should tell me what happened.”

Letting out an uneven sigh, Eren began. “Dinner was going well… we were talking and laughing and carrying on. You know. Family shit. Then dating was brought up and… some things were said, you know, and dad—”

“Freaked the fuck out because you’re a little angry bag of gay?”

Eren sighed and rolled his eyes. “You could put it that way, yeah.”

“And you told him to shove it, right? That he’s gotta deal with it?” Levi sounded slightly more awake now; Eren heard the shifting of his boyfriend’s body against the mattress and small ‘mmm’ sounds when he stretched. Levi spoke again. “Or did you just let him walk all over you?”

“I kinda… yelled at him.”

“That can be good or bad, depending on what you said.” Levi explained, yawning after he did so.

“I told hm that he must not love me as much as my mom did, because she would’ve supported me.” Eren pushed the words our, biting the inside of his cheek silently as he waited for Levi’s response.

There was a tired-sounding chuckle somewhat muffled through Eren’s phone before Levi replied with words—the laughter lasted a minute or two even though what Eren said really wasn’t humorous in the slightest. “That’s some hardcore shit, brat. What’d he say after that?”

Eren hesitated. “…Nothing. I slammed my bedroom door in his face because I didn’t want to hear his shit anymore. And then I called you.”

“Damn, Eren. And on a Monday night. You’re gonna have to go through the rest of the week with that.”

“Thanks, you know just want to say.” The brunette mumbled halfheartedly, running his hand up through his bangs, out of his eyes. “Hey, I’m gonna go out on a limb and—” he sniffed loudly, and this received a disgusted grunt from Levi.

“That’s nasty, go blow your fucking nose or something.”

“Sorry… I woke you didn’t I?”

“Yeah. Not like it matters, I never sleep all night anyway. Did you do your homework young man?”

“Levi…”

“What, I’m just trying to make you laugh. Jeez.”

“I know,” Eren sighed. “I just didn’t think that when I finally told him, that he’d react like such a—”

“Dick?”

“Yeah.”

“Well,” Levi began. “You know, fathers always expect their sons to grow up with the ability to carry on the family name; do that shit like marry some girl and have kids and then their kids do the same shit and so on and so on. Right?”

Nodding, Eren realized that his movement of his head was not an acceptable answer since Levi couldn’t hear him, so he breathed out a simple “yes”.

“Right, so, you gotta understand your dad is shocked, and probably a little hurt.”

“He screamed at me and told me it was disgusting.”

“My dad did the same thing. Actually… Let me ask you something.”

“Okay.”

There was a long silence before Levi said something again, lingering on some of his words as though unsure of how to say what he was thinking. “Say your mom was still there. You think she would’ve gotten involved? Do you think there would’ve been a fight at all if you mom was there?”

“I don’t understand the question…”

“You say your mom would’ve accepted it and supported you, right?”

“Yeah?”

“That doesn’t mean she would right off the bat, Eren. Having your kid come out of the closet is… how do I put this… it’s like having something you worked on for years, something you were proud of because of how it was turning out, be taken by someone else and molded into something you weren’t expecting, or something you didn’t want.” Levi paused, waiting to see if Eren was still listening. When he heard the younger boy exhale, he continued. “Even if she would’ve accepted it in the long run, it still would’ve taken her time to get used to it, whether it be a day or a year or however long.”

“Why’re you defending my dad?” Was the blunt response from the brunette.

“I’m not defending anybody.” Levi replied flatly. “I’m just telling you because this is exactly how my parents reacted, except nobody got slapped or kicked out—you’re in your house right?”

“My room...”

“My point exactly. Your dad could’ve gone to the extreme like mine did, threaten you and kick you out in the middle of the god damned day when people were outside doing what the fuck ever. You’re experiencing it so much better than I did. People still give a damn about you.”

“People give a damn about you, too.”

“You and Erwin don’t count.” Levi acknowledged the small gasp-whine Eren made in protest, and re-worded what he had said (lesson learned from last time). “You do, but that’s not what I meant. Anyway, I’m going to bed. Or I’m going to try to. Do something productive or whatever, watch porn if you want, I don’t really care.” He finally got a laugh out of Eren, despite how small it was, and he smiled. “Goodnight, Eren.”

“Goodnight, Levi.”

Neither of them hung up.

“Eren?”

“Yeah?”

“Keep your chin up. Don’t let it look like it’s getting to you even if it is. Got it?”

“Got it.”

There was a pause, but still, neither of them hung up.

“You know, I need to go back to sleep eventually.”

Eren tried to think of something funny, and so he spouted out the first thing that popped into his head. “I’m not your insomnia, why’re you telling me that?”

Levi snorted. “Alright, smartass, I’m going to hang up now. Bye,”

“Okay. Levi?”

“What is it?”

“...I love you.”

Levi felt as though Eren needed the satisfaction of hearing it. No, not the satisfaction, he just really needed to hear it. Without sounding to hesitant, or too eager, Levi shifted onto his back and hummed into the receiver. “I love you too. Goodnight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should really, _really_ work on some other shit now. Will i? Eh.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“I wouldn’t be calling you at midnight if something wasn’t the fucking matter, shit-for-brains.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just... I felt it was time for my brOTP to have a moment. Woo, some Levi backstory. Eventually he will tELL EREN (AND YOU PEOPLE) EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED OKAY BECAUSE IT'S A REALLY GOOD, HEARTFELT STORY ABOUT ASSHOLE PARENTS AND EVERLASTING FRIENDSHIPS *wipes tear and backflips into hell*

Fuck.

Fucking fuck.

Levi stared into the dim glow of his phone as it went back to its screensaver. 

_What just happened? I fucked up. I didn’t want to say that. I didn’t. Do I? I don’t fucking know. Fuck. Eren isn’t ready to hear that from me, he fucking knows it. Or… am I not ready to say it to him? Did I even mean it? Ugh. Levi. Go the fuck to sleep. Please for the love of all that is clean and tidy in the fucking world, go to sleep. You’re tired. Maybe you didn’t even really say it. Oh, I totally said it._

_Please go to sleep. Maybe Hanji can help you out with this. Wait, what? Why the fuck are you even thinking about asking for her help? What the fuck does she know? She’s just a stupid lady who has nothing better to do than steal your phone and text your boyfriend._

_Then again… He forgave you, thinking she was you, and she was able to trick him without even trying. Am I that predictable? She knew me for less than a god damn hour and she was able to pretend to be me… God damn it Levi, go to bed._

_…_

_Fuck my life._

Mashing his thumb against the keys of his phone and then pressing it to his ear, he waited. The ringing went on once, twice, three times—

“Levi? It’s past midnight there, isn’t it?” Erwin’s words weren’t rushed, indicating he wasn’t busy and had time to talk. At least to Levi, that was an indication.

“Yeah.” The reply was short, stated within a sigh.

“Is something the matter?”

“I wouldn’t be calling you at midnight if something wasn’t the fucking matter, shit-for-brains.” Levi hissed into the phone. He sat up and turned on the light of the lamp beside his bed. The circles around his eyes were dark as ever, and another audible sigh escaped his lips when he decided he probably wouldn’t go into class that morning. A split-second decision, but still, he’d be able to make up for time missed and knowledge lost.

Erwin let out a breath that wasn’t quite a sigh, but wasn’t quite _not_ a sigh. “Alright, well, what is it?”

“Eren.”

“Okay, I’m going to need a bit more to go off of than that, Levi.”

“Oh _my_ god, um, okay, how about the fucking kid came out to his dad today, and the fucker freaked out at him, and I kind of defended him? And Eren was really fuckin’ upset and I said… something to make him feel better and whether he acted like it or not, I may have made the whole thing worse.”

“What did you say to him that might have made it worse?” Erwin questioned.

“Yeah, I’m not telling you. Point is,” Levi explained, his voice getting louder, though tone remaining balanced. “I’m nearly positive that if I take back what I say, Eren is gonna have another little bitch fit and I don’t want to deal with it. Or, if I don’t take it back, he may expect me to make a habit of saying—um—what I said, and I don’t know if I meant it exactly like he interpreted it. I don’t know what to do.”

“Levi, let me ask you something.”

“Go for it.”

There was a short pause before Erwin found the words he wanted. He stated them carefully as to make sure Levi wouldn’t snort or find the response sarcastic, or _dickish_ , as the dark haired male had pointed out Erwin can be sometimes. “Do you honestly believe Eren will react with a ‘bitch fit’, like you say, because of this? I mean, you act like he’s an emotional wreck as is.”

“He kind of is.” Levi murmured and cocked an eyebrow. His tone became suspicious as he spoke smoothly into the receiver. “Wait, why do you ask?”

“Because, Levi, for the past three days, _you’ve_ been the emotional wreck. Now, I haven’t personally spoken to Eren for a while, and even though I know for a fact that he can get really passionate about things, maybe you’re just overthinking the whole situation.”

“You’re a fucking idiot.”

“Well, maybe if you told me what you said, I could be of more assistance.”

“I’m not going to tell you.”

“Well then there’s my advice.”

A whine merged with Erwin’s name in a way that Levi hadn’t spoken in years, but he didn’t care. “Errrrwwiiinnn. Help me.”

“I literally don’t know what I’m supposed to tell you that’ll help, Levi. Honestly, I think you’re just overthinking it, and you should just see how things go. Unless you told him that you wanted to get married, because then, yeah, that could be a problem.”

“You’re a fucking asshole. Why would I tell him that?”

“I dunno, because it’s a big step, and unless what you’re going for is fist-fight related, you normally take baby steps with things.”

“Is that a short joke? Because I will seriously reach through the phone and choke you if it was.”

Laughter erupted from the taller man and blasted through the receiver, nearly making Levi’s ears ring. “It was unintentional, I swear.”

“Fuck you, Erwin.” Levi growled.

“Yeah, yeah, I love you too.”

Levi cringed and shook his head quickly, switching the phone with his other hand as he leaned back against the headboard. “Don’t say that, okay? Anyway… What’re you doing?”

“Levi, you need to go to bed.”

“I’ll go to bed with I damn well please. Or rather, when my insomnia says it’s time. Entertain me, captain America.”

“So, I’m not allowed to accidentally make jokes about your height, but you can make remarks on my appearance? Hardly seems fair.” Erwin snorted.

“Captain America is fucking handsome, okay, but I could call you ‘Sir Erwin, King of the eyebrow monsters’ if you fucking prefer. Now entertain me.”

Erwin chuckled so smoothly it nearly made Levi smile. Knowing each other for so long, since before Levi had met Eren, or even known he was gay, Erwin was without a doubt Levi’s best friend. They were close enough to be brothers, but they didn’t look it. Erwin was blond, muscular, and tall, whereas Levi was quite small for his age, and despite being substantially strong, he didn’t exactly look muscular at first glance. And with the dark hair and cold blue eyes and dark rings that encircled them, they were far too different in appearance to look even slightly related.

“What do you want me to do?”

“Tell me a joke.”

“Oh, really?” Erwin mused. “I’m not sure my godlike sense of humor will match your shitty one.”

“Ha ha, you’re fucking hilarious.”

-

“Eren?”

The brunette opened his door to the sound of his sister’s voice. She had the keys to her can in her left hand and a gentle smile on her face. “I’m going to Annie’s for a while. Do you want a ride to Armin’s house or something?”

“Why?”

Her smile remained, but her eyes shined with worry. “Well… I just think some time with Armin could be good for you. You know, best friends tend to help heal wounds.”

“I’m not fucking hurt, Mikasa,” Eren realized how much of an ass he sounded like right now, and though regretting his choice of words, he pressed on. “Why’re you even going to see Annie? It’s like eight. We have school tomorrow.”

Mikasa’s smile had faded and her brows were now knitted into an anxious facial expression. Her keys jingled as she fidgeted, switching them from her left hand to her right, then back again. “It’s not like I’m spending the night. Do you want to go to Armin’s or not?”

“No.” He paused. “Actually, yeah.”

Eren quickly grabbed his phone from his desk and followed Mikasa through the hallway. Upon opening the front door, she called out “Dad, I’m taking Eren to Armin’s house and I’ll be at Annie’s—we’ll be home before ten!” and when there was no response, the two teens took it as an OK and exited the house.

They climbed into Mikasa’s car and she stuck the key into ignition. When the car started the backed out of their driveway and began on their way to Armin’s house. Eren glanced at the radio, and with a noticeable nod from his sister, he began searching through the radio stations, trying to find one that playing decent music. With no luck, he put in the CD that Annie had gotten for Mikasa on her birthday last February.

“Hey—I know this band!” Eren grinned, nodding his head to the pings of the guitar’s tune that flowed from the speakers. “Panic at the—“

“Panic! At the Disco.” Mikasa glanced at him and smiled, pressing the button on her stereo that lead to the next song. “‘Oh, well imagine, as I'm pacing the pews in a church corridor’,”

Deciding it was a duet with his sister, Eren chimed in. “‘No, I can't help but to hear an exchanging of words: What a beautiful wedding! What a beautiful wedding!’ says a bridesmaid to a waiter’,” 

The two of them sang together in imperfect and off-tune harmony. “‘And, yes, but what a shame, what a shame the poor groom's bride is a whore.’”

Singing the entire song—and another, “Miss Jackson”,—out of tune, mixed with mild laughter and loud snorting, they arrived at Armin’s house in no time. Having been dropped off in such a better mood than before, he waved Mikasa off and walked to the front door without taking notice to the second car in Armin’s driveway.

Eren was always welcome to the Arlert household, no matter the time, as Armin’s grandfather adored Eren and since the boys were best friends, he the man saw no problem in having Eren over whenever the brunette invited himself. Armin didn’t have a problem with it either, even recently now that he started dating Jean, and welcomed Eren in with open arms, though it was rare that Eren would come unannounced, this time for example.

He knocked on the door once then turned the knob and invited himself in without a second to be stopped. He set both feet in, shutting the door and calling Armin out from his bedroom, “Armi—” and pausing mid-way through the name when his gaze stopped on the sofa.

Staring back at him was a flustered Armin with messy hair, and Jean, who was obviously irritated by the sudden interruption. Armin’s arms awkwardly draped around Jean’s neck, fingers curled tightly against his palms and his blue eyes shining with—the fuck is that—lust? And Jean, with one arm around Armin and the other was down, his hand cupping the shorter boy between the legs of his jeans—

“Eren?” The blonde whimpered almost so quietly it could have been nothing.

Averting his gaze from the two boys on the couch and to the TV, oh look, Mulan is on, listening to the two shuffle uncomfortably, Armin removing his arms from around Jean and sitting with his legs off of the couch now.

“Well, fuck.” Jean mumbled, shifting positions and leaning against the cushion.

“Yeah, sorry, I didn’t think I was interrupting anything.” Eren shot back, watching the animated characters attempt to climb up the wooden pole to retrieve the arrow.

“Eren, what’re you doing here?” Armin asked after a minute of silence between the three of them, silence that was filled with the loud beats of the drum in the movie.

Before the green-eyed boy could respond, he flinched; _let’s get down to business_ —oh god—and then turned to Armin. “I came to hang out because my dad is an asshole and Mikasa offered me the ride. But…” He looked toward the door and stepped mid-way through the frame as he continued. “You guys are busy so I’ll take a walk or something. See you tomorrow,”

“You don’t have to go,” Armin told him with a gentle smile. Jean merely shot Eren a look before folding his arms over his chest and looking back to the TV. “What happened with your dad?”

“I’ll tell you tomorrow. Go back to whatever you were doing; I’ll just see you guys tomorrow.” He shut the door behind him as he walked out, staring at the darkening driveway before him. _God. I’ll never get that image out of my head. And that song made it worse. Who the fuck watches_ Mulan _when they’re doing that—I’ll bet Jean planned it so that I’ll Make a Man Out of You would play just when they—oh my god, Eren, stop thinking about it. Please._

-

“Levi, I do think you’re falling asleep on me… Levi?”

“Huh… no, I’m awake. Keep saying shit; what’d you do at work today?”

“Levi you’ve asked me that four times now. You’re tired. It’s nearly two A.M. there. Go to bed.”

“Errrrrrrw—”

“I don’t want to hear it. Go to bed right now.”

Levi’s eyelids dropped heavily and he let out a loud yawn before nodded as though Erwin could see. “Okay. Bye, Sir Er-brow.”

The line went dead, on Levi’s part, before Erwin could reply, and the shorter man tiredly laid his phone on the small dresser beside his bed. “Jesus Christ, that man can talk and talk…”

Really, he missed those days during his childhood when he would spend the night at Erwin’s house—back when his own parents were having problems and either they didn’t want Levi around for it, or Levi didn’t want to be around to hear it—and they would talk and be stupid until the late hours of the night, to where Levi, surprisingly, would always crash first. He’d be woken up by a sleepy twelve-year-old Erwin calling out to him and asking him if he was tired, and after he replied with a “Yes, stupid,” the two would pass out and be awoken at nine A.M. to the scent of waffles.

And by the time Levi turned fifteen, he discovered how unappealing he found the opposite sex to be. Having only had one girlfriend his whole life didn’t make it any easier for him to come to the realization, but by the time he hit sixteen, he knew he was gay. Erwin, being more supportive than Levi’s own parents were, was pretty much the only person Levi could go to.

_“What do you mean they kicked you out?”_

_“The fucking kicked me out, Erwin. My mom screamed and cried like she just found I committed a fucking murder, and my dad slapped me, and told me that ‘faggots weren’t welcomed in his house’.”_

_“Damn… that’s fucking heavy. He slapped you?”_

_“Yes. Right in the face. Erwin, I don’t know what to do. They didn’t even let me pack. All I had time to grab was my phone and my backpack. Like… I don’t even have fucking gas money. What the fuck do they expect me to do?”_

_“You can stay with me,”_

Erwin has been his best friend since they were so young that coloring inside the lines didn’t seem like a priority. Whatever that fucker said, Levi would take his word for. Levi trusted Erwin more than he trusted anyone, more than he trusted Eren, and more than he trusted himself. Maybe I am just overthinking this. Erwin’s right.

Falling asleep with the closest thing to a smile that Levi could make when thinking of Erwin, he didn’t dream. He just laid in the cool silence of his room, sleeping easy to the thought that just like he was okay, just like he had been okay, Eren, too, would be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this chapter could have been so much longer, but I have other shit i need to write, and I haven't written for almost a week and felt it was about time. Woo, though, I caught up on sleep and schoolwork (눈_눈✿)


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fact that Annie had never truly grasped Levi’s name—that, or she really didn’t care to remember it—was always funny to Mikasa. However, this time, she didn’t laugh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I needed some PetAuru and MikaAni, and so did you.

As August was the last month of summer, it was just that. Summer. The nights, though not as warm as the day, cooled to the perfect temperature of _not too hot that you sweat enough to fill a bathtub_ and _not too cold that the breezes make you feel like you stepped inside of a fucking storage freezer._

Eren shoved his hands down into his pockets. It was almost 9o’clock (8:45), and he didn’t feel the need to call or text Mikasa and tell her that he wasn’t at Armin’s house, or that he was just going to walk around town like a sketchy teenage boy until ten o’clock came around.

His legs carried him tiredly out of Armin’s neighborhood and down the streets until he arrived at the small stores that were lined up one by one, including the bookstore that Armin was quite a well-known customer. Beside the bookstore was the game exchange store that Eren would go to when he didn’t have enough money for the GameStop in town. Earlier that summer, he and Armin decided they were going to apply for part-time jobs at the two stores, working side by side—kind of. 

He passed by the two stores, glancing into the window of the game exchange and then stopping outside of the only store with its lights still on. It was a small family-run restaurant. He wasn’t hungry, but the aroma coming from the last meals of the night nearly entranced him. A voice brought him out of his food-induced daydreams (daydreams that only Sasha would understand).

“What the fuck; hungry or something ya little shit?”

Eren glanced to his side and cringed at the taller, annoyed looking male standing near the door of the restaurant. He knew the man, his name was Auruo Bossard, and he forgot that the annoying bastard worked here. “No, just taking a walk.”

“Walking means you’re legs are moving. You’re stopped, staring like a starving puppy waiting for someone to drop a scrap for you. Either that,” He gazed into the window of the restaurant then snapped his view back to Eren. “Or you’re ogling.”

Eren snorted and rolled his eyes, looking away from Auruo and back toward the window, only to have his gaze land on the petite ginger waving at him, gesturing for the two of them to come inside.

“Hey, Petra,” Eren smiled, opening the door and having the dinging of the bell above the door sound his entrance, with a second ding to sound Auruo’s.

“Eren~” She hummed, pulling the tall brunette into a gentle embrace. “It’s been a while since I’ve last seen you. How’s everything going?”

“As of today, not very well,” He let out a sigh, hugging her back and then pulling away the same time as she.

Auruo scoffed, standing beside Petra and nonchalantly placing his arm around her shoulder. We was about to say something rude, Petra could feel it, and she spoke for him as he opened his mouth. “What happened?”

Eren didn’t know Petra all too personally, as she and Auruo were two of Levi’s friends, and he had only seen them a few times outside of Levi’s apartment. However, the two times he had seen her outside of it, he was in this very restaurant. Not with Levi, but with a group of his own friends. She was their waitress.

“Just some shit with my dad. I talked to Levi about it though, felt a lot better after I did, but it’s still irking me a lot.”

“We all have problems; don’t act like such a teenage girl with your daddy prob—ow! Petra, what the hell was that for?” Auruo rubbed the back of his head, cringing, looking down at the petite girl beside him.

“Don’t be an asshole to Levi’s boyfriend.” She said flatly, glaring up at him then turning back to Eren. “What happened with your dad?”

Eren hesitated to answer. It’s not that he didn’t trust Petra—she was probably one of the most trustworthy people he knew, and he barely knew her to begin with—he just wasn’t sure if he should be telling everyone the great story of how he came out and got screamed at. “I… came out. And he didn’t like it.”

-

“Annie, I did a bad thing.” Mikasa flopped down on the blonde girl’s bed and ran her fingers through her black hair. She sighed uneasily and laid back against the mattress, her legs off the side and her feet on the floor.

Shutting her bedroom door, Annie turned to Mikasa with an arched brow before she strode over and sat beside the other girl. “What’d you do?”

Looking up at Annie, Mikasa’s dark eyes were still filled with worry from the previous events of the night. “I kind of told my dad that Eren—”

“Your dad’s back?”

“Yes—oh my god, Annie, hold on a second, that’s not really important.” Mikasa grumbled.

“It kind of is, because I wasn’t aware, but go on.”

Sighing, the black haired girl sat up once more and looked down at her lap. “I kind of told him Eren was gay. Well, no… I told him Eren was in love, which I shouldn’t have, and you know how shitty of a liar Eren is—kinda like you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” The pause was short and Annie didn’t give Mikasa time to respond as she continued. “Never mind that, I’ll go back to that later. So Eren had to tell your dad about what’s his face?”

The fact that Annie had never truly grasped Levi’s name—that, or she really didn’t care to remember it—was always funny to Mikasa. However, this time, she didn’t laugh. “He didn’t _have_ to, but he did. Then we went home and I went to my room because I really, _really_ did not want to be brought into the whole thing.” She looked up at Annie’s expression, curious eyes urged her on. “I already felt like a shit of a sister for saying as much as I did. And so, they screamed at each other, and I tried to drown it out. After a while I asked Eren if he wanted to go to Armin’s or something while I came over here, and so I dropped him off and then came over here, and… yeah.”

Annie nodded silently, taking in what information had just been given to her. “So… you didn’t tell him you had a thing for girls?”

“Annie!” Mikasa wanted to sound irritated but couldn’t because she started laughing too hard for something that wasn’t even really that funny.

“Okay, okay,” A very small smile worked its way onto Annie’s lips before she spoke again. “I’m sure everything is going to be okay. I mean, if all that happened was that they had a screaming match, I’m sure they’ll work it out.” Mikasa said nothing, and after a minute of silence, Annie spoke again. “But seriously, you didn’t tell him?”

“Annie…” It came out as a sigh; Mikasa leaned her head on Annie’s shoulder as though seeking comfort.

Gently laying her cheek against Mikasa’s head, Annie began to mumble. “What? Seriously, I mean, I get that you’re kind of iffy on telling him, but damn Mikasa, I don’t want to be known as ‘Mikasa’s short friend who knocked Eren to the ground that one time’ forever.”

“I know…”

Placing her arm around the black haired girl, Annie gently shook Mikasa’s shoulder. “Let’s get that out of your head, hm? Dad bought _Hangover Part Three_ today,”

“That movie series is so disgusting.”

“It’s hilarious. It’ll get your mind off of things.” Denying Mikasa the ability to protest, Annie hopped off of her bed and grabbed the DVD case still incased in plastic. After tearing it off, she opened the case and removed the disc out, and carefully slid it into the player hooked up beside her TV.

“How long is the movie?” Mikasa sighed again.

Turning the box over and scanning for the movie’s running time, Annie shrugged. “It’s a little over an hour and a half. Why? Did dad of the year give you a curfew?”

Mikasa rolled her eyes. “No. I told Eren I’d pick him up at ten.”

“Call the little fuck and tell him you’ll be late or whatever.” Grabbing the remote to control the player, the blond made her way back over to her bed and say beside Mikasa once more. “Tomorrow’s Tuesday; not like any of us have anything important going on at school tomorrow.”

“Annie—”

Mikasa was cut off by Annie’s lips being pressed to her own. It ended before Mikasa could make the choice to kiss back or pull away, and the blond now had her gaze back to the screen. “Don’t be a party pooper. Just watch the movie with me. I don’t think Eren will care.”

-

The decision to give Eren a ride home ended up being an argument between Auruo and Petra, which Petra ultimately won by flat out saying “I’m cute, and it’s my car, so it’s my rules.”

In the back of Petra’s car, Eren fidgeted uncomfortably with the hem of his shirt while the two adults proceeded to argue; something about Auruo needing to bite his tongue. Finally, arriving at a red-light, Petra turned in her seat to look at Eren. “You’re not carsick, are you?”

“No,”

Petra scanned his face before turning back to look at the lights. “Do you not want to go home?” I can take you to a friends’ house or something if you prefer.”

“It’s fine, really.” Eren promised.

“Stop being so worried about the damn kid and keep your eyes on the road, woman.” Auruo grumbled, which received a punch to the arm from Petra.

“So, I have a question,” The brunette in the backseat stated.

“Shoot.” Auruo replied, and at the same time as Petra saying “What is it?”

“How long have you guys known Levi?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *cracks every knuckle, bone, joint, and vain in my hand* ALRIGHT. LETS WRITE THIS MOTHAFUCKIN' BACK-STORY.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part one of Levi's story, as told by lil' miss Petra Ral.
> 
>  
> 
> _Eren is a cockblock. Then again, it’s only Monday. Then again, he’s a fucking cockblock._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Petra drives slow, guys.

“I’ve known him since… third grade, I think?” 

“Can I ask you what he was like as a kid? When did you meet him?”

Petra shifted in her seat, drumming her fingers slowly against the steering wheel. “I dunno, it was sometime around my ninth birthday that I met him. Other than Erwin—you’ve met Erwin? Yeah—other that Erwin, he didn’t really have many friends.”

“She says ‘many’ like he had more than the one.” Auruo mumbled.

“Stop.” She shot him a glare before returning her gaze to the road. “As I was saying, Levi was one of those kids that you could see clearly; he was not a people person. He and Erwin were almost always together; they sat together in class and worked on projects together. Up until fifth grade, I always had class with them, and then Erwin was transferred into another class and switched with this one here,” Nodding toward Auruo, Petra glanced back at Eren.

“Oh come on, you say that like it’s a bad thing.” Auruo snorted and shrugged before leaning against the window and looking out at the blurred lights they passed.

Rolling her eyes, Petra looked forward once more. “Anyway, Levi was really quiet after Erwin got switched.”

“Nobody talked to him?” Eren questioned, head tilting slightly to the left.

“Not for a while,” Petra explained. “Well, some of the other students would sit by him around the beginning of the year, and they’d try to be friends with him, but they would either get this cold stare that everyone could feel, _or_ he would use profane language that a fifth grader really shouldn’t use until a teacher would take him to the main office.”

Auruo scoffed, jerking back to look at Eren. “When the little shit was an even littler shit, he literally told me to fuck off.”

“I can’t imagine why.” Petra mumbled.

“Hey!—” Petra drove over a bump and Auruo grunted, covering his mouth. “Fucking bloody hell—”

“See if you didn’t talk so much you wouldn’t bite your tongue so often!” Petra half-shouted and couldn’t suppress her giggle. “What else do you want to know, Eren?” She asked after calming down a bit.

Auruo mumbled things to himself while Eren mused over questions. “How did you become his friend, Petra?”

“Huh? Oh. Well… We were at recess, and there was this guy. Nile was his name, I think. Anyway, I was sitting on a bench because I skinned my knee and I was waiting for my teacher to come back with a Band-Aid. 

“Nile came up from his group of friends and he sat next to me. Next thing I knew, he was… just… verbally bullying me. Said I was ugly, that my eyes were too big, that my hair was too short, you know. At the time, I was a ten year old girl, and you know how ten year old girls are,” She paused. “Okay, maybe you don’t… Mikasa was ten once, so I’m sure you do. I took it to heart and told him to shut up, but he just kept on with it. ‘Petra will never get married. Petra will never be loved. Petra will never get a boyfriend. Petra is stupid.’ Things like that.

“I didn’t know I was crying until Nile was walking away and Levi went up to him, Erwin following a little ways behind. He said ‘did you make that girl cry?’ and Nile just laughed. He wasn’t laughing long though, because Levi…” A small smile worked its way onto Petra’s lips. “He punched Nile in the face and knocked him down. As a fifth grader, Levi was actually a normal height; I think he was the same size as Nile. One punch knocked Nile onto his ass and Levi stood over him, and the last thing he said to Nile was ‘you don’t make girls cry, asshole’, and I never thought I’d laugh so hard at a fight.”

Auruo snickered, also recalling the moment. “I saw that; it was fucking hilarious.”

Eren’s silence urged Petra on. She turned left, totally lost, but having too much fun telling stories to care. Eren didn’t seem to mind either. “So Levi came over to sit beside me and he asked if I was okay. I told him I was, and he looked at my knee and cringed. I’m sure you’ve figured out how much Levi just loves dirty things, and he got up and walked over to the little water fountain on the wall and he filled his hands with it and then came back to wash my knee off the best he could. Really… He wasn’t as cold as his attitude made him seem."

“Then our teacher came back and Nile told on Levi like the little bitch he is,” Auruo snorted and Petra laughed again, harder this time.

“Levi did get in trouble, but me and Erwin, we came to his rescue and explained the situation. He still got in trouble for punching Nile in the face, but the punishment wasn’t as severe as it would have been if he had just punched Nile for sport. That’s how I became friends with Levi; he came to my rescue.”

“That’s fucking adorable.” Eren admitted, clapping his hands together, applauding Petra’s story. “So you guys have been friends since fifth grade? I’ve known Armin since about the same grade—fourth I think—”

“Petra where the fuck are we going?” Auruo cut Eren off, snapping toward the small girl.

She laughed nervously and shrugged, stopping at another light. “I got so distracted with telling that story that I forgot where we were going. Also, Eren, I have no idea where you live, so I’ve kind of been driving in circles for the past twenty minutes.”

“Well I live around here then, take me home first.”

“Do you mind if I take Auruo home first, Eren?” Petra turned to him.

“Not at all.”

-

Holding his phone to his ear, Armin shook his head and released Jean’s hand from his own. “He’s not here Mikasa; he left thirty-five minutes ago.”

Jean got up from the couch as Armin explained to Mikasa for the third time that Eren wasn’t at his house. Walking to the kitchen to retrieve something to drink, he couldn’t help but laugh about the whole thing. _Eren is a cockblock. Then again, it’s only Monday. Then again, he’s a fucking cockblock._

“Armin, do you want anything while I’m in here?” He called, interrupting the shorter male from his phone call.

“—No,” Armin replied quickly before going back to his call with Mikasa. “—I told you, he left. Why? …Well, I was busy—Jean’s here… N-no! …Okay, yeah. But I told him he could stay—no—did you try calling him?” A pause. 

Jean opened the refrigerator and pulled out a can of Pepsi, shutting the door afterward. He returned to the living room just as Armin spoke again. 

“Okay well maybe his phone died or something? I’m sure he’s fine. He probably walked home. Hey, what happened with your dad? He wouldn’t tell me.” Another pause; a long one. “Oh… Okay, damn. I’ll text him and see where he is, maybe he’ll answer me. Okay. Yeah, you too. Bye, Mikasa.” He hung up.

“Gonna tell me what happened?”

Armin glanced at his boyfriend with a half-smile—fake, no doubt— that disappeared before he looked down to his phone to select Eren’s contact. “Basically, Eren’s dad is a homophobe.”

-

Auruo planted a small kiss to Petra’s lips before exiting the car and leaving the door open for Eren to switch seats. They bumped shoulders when the younger male got out and passed him, but instead of some rude comment pointed toward Eren, he received a “friendly” pat to the back. Eren shut the passenger-side door and once Auruo entered the building, Petra drove out of the parking lot.

Glancing over, Eren saw the light blush gracing Petra’s cheeks. He didn’t get the chance to comment before Petra turned to him. “Any more questions? I like telling stories.”

“What was it like for you guys during middle school and high school?” Eren had a lot of questions to ask, but sticking to the small stuff was the smartest way to go about it. 

“Well, in sixth grade, he and Erwin were still inseparable, which was expected. They often arrived to school at the same time—I recall Erwin saying how more than half of the week, Levi would stay at his house overnight and his parents would drive the two of them to school. It was this way up until eighth grade, and Levi started walking to school.”

“Why?”

“I don’t remember if he ever told me; I never really asked. Anyways, about the middle of eighth grade, more toward the end, Levi asked me out, and through ninth and the middle of tenth grade we dated—”

Eren cut her off, turning slightly in his seat. “Whoa, wait. You and Levi… you guys were boyfriend and girlfriend for two years?”

She nodded slowly. “We were. But it wasn’t really a serious relationship. The only thing we ever did was hold hands, but it didn’t really last when we did; he’d always jerk his hand away like it was a nervous twitch. I never asked why because I didn’t want it to turn into some kind of fight by some chance.” Petra paused so that she could stop at yet another red light. “Eren, where the hell do you live?”

The brunette couldn’t help but laugh, realizing he still hadn’t told her. “Shinganshina Drive, fourth house on the right. Anyway…”

“Oh, right, high school.” She nodded, continuing. “So yeah, up until the middle of tenth grade we dated and the break up was really unconventional.”

“How so?”

“Well… what he said made it unconventional.” The look Eren gave her—pure curiosity and nothing more—urged her to go on. “It was during lunch. He, me, Erwin, and Auruo would sit together every day, but today was different. Erwin and Auruo were with these other kids; Nanaba, Erd and Gunther. Anyway, so we were alone, and Levi turns to me...”

* * *

“Petra… I need to talk to you about something.”

“What’s up?” She smiled at him, but her grin slowly vanished as she noticed the expression he held. Nervous. Uneasy. And she felt it in her heart; she knew what was about to happen. She swallowed hard before asking her next question. “Is everything alright?”

Levi didn’t respond right away, but when he did, his words were low and crackly. “No. I… I actually don’t know. But… Petra I—”

“You’re breaking up with me, right?” She wouldn’t cry. She was sad, yes, because she liked him. However, he seemed to be very… anxious, and whatever the reason that made him seem like this kept Petra calm despite how she really felt.

He nodded slowly, hesitantly, and let out a harsh breath. This was very unlike him. “Yes, but… that’s not all I wanted to talk to you about. Do you hate me for breaking up with you?”

She couldn’t help but laugh. “What? No, of course not! Levi, we’ve been friends how long now? Since fifth grade. I could never hate you. Why would you even ask that?”

Levi shifted in his seat and looked away from her. “I… I think I'm gay.”

Instead of taking this to heart as Levi half-feared she would, Petra merely smiled again. All the previous accusations to why he had broken up to her had just blown away and for some reason, she was completely fine now (for the most part). She placed a hand over his in attempt to calm him, show him that there was no need to be worried, show him that he was not going to be judged. “Erwin?”

And then he was back to the old Levi. “What? Fuck no. Not him. Nobody—definitely not him. He’s like my brother.”

“Then where did that come from? What makes you think you’re g—”

“Not so loud, Petra.” He mumbled and then sighed, shaking his head. “I’m not attracted to girls. I thought I was to you, but it was the wrong kind of attraction. Not to say you’re not pretty, because you are, but…”

She nodded. “I understand.”

“Anyway… I dunno, it’s just…”

“Levi, I said I understand. You don’t need to explain anything… so, do your parents know?”

“God no. Why the fuck would I tell them? You’re the first one I’ve told.”

Petra cocked her head to the side, leaning toward him so when she whispered she was sure only he would hear her. “You haven’t even told Erwin?”

“I don’t know how he’ll react. He might be homophobic and think I’m in love with him or some shit like that.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Levi, he’s your best friend. Your _best_ friend.”

“You don’t understand, Petra.”

* * *

Eren stared at the dashboard of Petra’s car as she finished her recollection of her and Levi’s break up. 

“That really all I can tell you in detail. In high school, he didn’t date anyone, and I don’t think he came out to his parents until the next year. Not sure about Erwin either, because after the second semester started, I didn’t have any classes with the two of them. Also, we’re here, Eren.”

Looking up, he saw they were in his driveway. “So,” He had his hand on the door handle, ready to exit, and turned to face her. “You don’t know what happened with his parents?”

“Vaguely. He was really upset when he talked to me about it, and I didn’t ask for details.”

“Alright,” Eren opened the door and stepped out, holding his other hand up and sending her a small wave. “Thanks for the ride, Petra.”

“Anytime, Eren,” She smiled as she shut the door. As Eren made his way to the front door, Petra backed out of his driveway and began her drive to her apartment. Once her taillights disappeared in the distance, Eren stepped inside of the house, shutting the door behind him, and set off for his room.

Before he could get into his room, Mikasa stopped him in the hallway. She had a firm grip on his arm and a worried look on her face. “Where the hell have you been? Why didn’t you answer your phone?”

He ignored her second question. “Armin was busy with Jean, so I took a walk. Petra drove me home. You know her, she’s Levi’s neighbor and she was our waitress both times we and some of the others ate at that restaurant by the game exch—”

“Yes I fucking know who Petra is. Why didn’t you call me to tell me you were okay, though?!” She spoke so loudly it was nearly a shout.

“My phone died.” He lied. He had put it on silent so he wouldn’t have to bother with worried siblings. “What time is it?”

“Ten fucking fourty-five. Get in the shower and go to bed; I don’t want a repeat of today.”

Rolling his eyes, Eren jerked his arm away and walked inside of his room. “Okay, _mom_.”

Silently, Mikasa walked back into her bedroom and shut the door behind her. Eren went through his dresser for clean clothes to change into, and pulled his phone out from his pocket. He had three missed calls and four texts from Mikasa, and one from Armin.

He tossed his phone on his bed and made his way to the bathroom to shower. Still curious about what happened with Levi’s parents and Erwin, he made a mental note to ask Levi about it tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part Two of Levi's story will be told by none other than the bayblade himself.


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part two of Levi's story, told by the short-stack himself, as promised.
> 
>  
> 
> _Just come right out with it. Literally. Burst through those closet doors and tell him. Spell it out in a song and dance if you have to._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 5000+ word chapter, anybody? Also, hooray for humor. And, hm, perhaps Levi should start being nicer to Hanji?
> 
> ...
> 
>  
> 
> _Naaaah._

“Good Morning, Rivaille,” Hanji greeted him at his door. He blinked tiredly at her, still in his pajamas and his hair an utter sleepy mess. When he didn’t respond, she held a cup from Starbucks out to him. “I got you coffee,”

“What time is it?” He took the cup from it, feeling the warmth from what it held burn his fingers, but it helped him wake up.

“It’s seven forty. Lucky I decided to come get you—did your alarm clock not wake you?”

He shook his head and turned his back to her. “No. I went to bed late. I planned on playing hooky.” Lifting the cup to his mouth, he took a sip and then shot her a death glare as he forced it down. “What the fuck is this?”

“It’s coffee!” She paused. “It’s our third week; hooky isn’t a good idea. You might miss something important.” The glare he was giving her made her shift uncomfortably, shrugging her shoulders as though hoping it’d make him stop. “What’s wrong with the coffee?”

Levi set the cup on his dresser and flopped back down onto his bed, back against the mattress and his legs off the side, ankles crossed. “It’s disgusting. How much fucking cream did you put in it? Whatever, I don’t really care. Thanks for trying and completely failing as my slave.”

Rolling her eyes, Hanji leaned against the frame of his door. “So, hooky?”

“I’m not going to say you should cover for me, but I’m also not going to say you should tell our professors that I’m sleeping.”

“Aw, what, you’re not gonna ask me to hang out with you and keep you company—”

“No, fuck you. Get out, and take your shitty coffee with you.” Levi pulled his legs up onto the bed and rolled over, facing the wall and he groaned.

Hanji stepped inside of his room and sighed, placing her hand on her hip and looking down at the tired man. “You’re seriously not going in today? Ooookay,” She turned and swiped the cup from his dresser. Smirking, she sent a quick smack to his ass, “Have a nice day!” and was halfway down the hall when he jerked up to spout threats at her. At least she shut the door behind her.

As he made his mind up in the split second between waking up and hearing Hanji’s knuckles beat against his door, not only had he decided that he wasn’t going to class today, but he also really didn’t want to put up with Hanji today. However, still having her on punishment—and her seeming to think it was a way for her to become his friend, yeah right—made it obvious that she would be back after class. Sure, that was eight hours without her loud mouth and incessant chattering, but it was _only_ eight hours without her loud mouth and incessant chattering.

Regardless, however long he had left to sleep; he’d try to get back to it before his insomnia chose otherwise. He rolled onto his other side and turned his lamp off. Pulling the covers over himself, he estimated he’d sleep another three to four hours, and if his estimation was correct, it really meant only one thing. Four hours of perfect silence.

-

“Eren, don’t give me shit this morning, get up.”

The boy’s eyes fluttered open. His vision blurred at first, then once adjusting, he looked up to see his sister. Showered and ready to go, her arms were crossed and her eyes were boring into him.

“Come on,” She ordered. “Up.”

She left and he sat up, rubbing his eyes, and yawned. After a moment, he stood and walked to his closet to pick out some clothes. He was lazy about it—dragging his feet as he walked—but he wasn’t tired. Not really, anyway.

After he changed, he grabbed his bag. Eren realized he hadn’t done any of his homework, but oh well. He was always decent with excuses.

“Bye dad,” Mikasa called, pulling Eren through the hall and past the kitchen.

No response.

*

“How far were we supposed to get in _Hamlet_ last night?” Eren whispered to Armin when the boy sat beside him in class.

“Like you were going to read anyway—how’re you doing after last night?” The blond replied, pulling the book from his backpack along with a pencil and his notebook.

Eren shifted in his seat and tapped the fingers of his left hand against his desk. “Why do you ask?”

“Mikasa told me what happened.” Armin told him.

Sighing, Eren rubbed the back of his neck and looked to his friend. “That doesn’t surprise me at all. I’m fine.”

“Are you? Last night you seemed pretty upset, even though you left like a minute after you got there. I know you well enough to know something was wrong.”

Eren scoffed. “So did you end up having sex with Jean, or did I ruin the moment?”

The blonde’s face quickly became a deep shade of red and he looked down to his lap. “Shut up and answer my question. Are you okay? Like, are you really okay?”

“I’m fine, Armin.”

-

Levi rolled onto his back, slowly opening his eyes, and cringing at the light in his eyes. He was positive he had turned the light off before he went to sleep, why was—

“Hey there, Rivaille; sleep well?” Hanji cooed from the chair at Levi’s desk.

The man sat up, eyes half-shut and yawned before hissing swears her way. “What the fuck are you doing back here?”

“Class is over. You slept through each lecture—I honestly expected you to show up halfway through one of them and spout an excuse you pulled out of your ass.” She snorted. “Anyway, I got you another coffee. It’s black. The café was closed today so no tea for your sorry excuse of a—”

Levi cut her off with an empty threat. “For the love of Christ shut up or I will throw this god damn lamp at you.” He wrapped his fingers around the base of the lamp as though he would actually do it.

Hanji hesitated. “Er… your phone’s gone off a few times. You should answer it before your boyfriend has an aneurysm.”

“Did you touch my phone? Do I seriously need to have this talk with you again?” It came out as a deep, irritated growl before Levi swung his legs over the side of his bed and pointed a hateful glare at her.

She only smiled. “Nope. I merely heard it buzz, looked over, and saw it was Eren. You gonna tell me about him ever? Like how you guys met or—”

“No, fuck you. Toss it over here.” She took it from the top of his desk and flung it across the room at him. It hit his palm with a thwack and he snarled at her. “Jesus, throw it any harder and you’d take off my head.”

The snort-laugh that erupted from Hanji’s throat made Levi want to punch her. He didn’t allow her the comment she so desired to say, and he could tell by the way her eyes lit up that whatever she was going to say, it was going to be immature. “Which—”

“Shut the fuck up.” He looked down. "Eren texted me three times? Huh…”

An hour ago; Eren: Hey, I have stuff to ask you later  
Forty minutes ago; Eren: Can I call you when I’m at lunch or should I wait until tonight?  
Twenty two minutes ago; Eren: I’ll just wait :)

Levi set his phone face down beside his lamp and looked at Hanji. “How long have you even been in here watching me sleep like a fucking stalker?”

She leaned back in the chair and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose with her middle finger. “Two hours,”

“Freak.”

“I am not; I wasn’t watching you sleep. I was doing homework. Anyway, what’d Eren want?” Levi narrowed his eyes and got off his bed stretched his arms up. Before he could respond, Hanji snickered. “Stretch all you want, you’re not gonna get much taller.”

“Do you want to die? I feel like you have a death wish.” He spat bluntly.

She only laughed and then the room grew silent. Her smile slowly faded and her expression became solemn as she went back to the work before her. Levi watched her scribble furiously across the page with her pen. Finally, he turned away from her to make his bed.

“You know, I’ve known you for like two days, and you’re more annoying than anyone I’ve ever met.”

“It’s your fault, you know.”

“How?” He jerked the blanket up from his mattress to fix his sheets before looking over his shoulder at her. “If you hadn’t—”

“Don’t blow a fuse, but it really is your fault. I only wanted to be your friend.”

Levi rolled his eyes. “Don’t make this some sentimental ‘After-School Special’ shit, Zoe. I don’t have friends.”

“Everybody has friends.” She looked over the rim of her glasses. “Even someone as pompous and angry as you are. Right? Eren is your friend, is he not?”

“He’s my boyfriend. Not my friend.” Levi finished making his bed, tucking his blanket into the mattress so tightly you could bounce a quarter off of it.

“My boyfriend is my friend,” She told him.

“I didn’t ask you if he was.”

Hanji sighed and stood up, shoving her things into her backpack before pulling it up onto her back and making her way to the door. “Okay, whatever. I’m gonna go since you don’t need me for anything, then.” Levi watched her open the door and just before she stepped outside of his room she turned to look at him. “By the way, your coffee’s cold.”

-

“How was your day?” Mikasa poked Eren in the ribs before turning out of the school parking lot. Surprisingly, the day went by quickly.

“We're still reading _Hamlet_ in English. And we’re doing complicated shit with equations and fractions and trinomial factors in math…” He paused. “Then in History we talked about the Underground Railroad, like we haven’t been learning about that since, like, elementary school. Also, I think I pissed Armin off, and then in gym we played dodge ball. I hit almost his Jean in the crotch.” He snorted.

“What’d you do to Armin to piss him off?”

“Hmm…” Eren glanced to his sister. “I dunno. I think it was because my sister told him my fucking business and I nearly blew up at him.”

Mikasa stiffened and looked out at the road, her eyes narrowing. “Well _you_ didn’t seem to want to tell him, so I thought—”

“You should stop thinking.”

The rest of the ride home was wordless and awkward. Even with Panic! At The Disco playing in the background, neither of them said a word. The only sound coming from either of them was Mikasa humming along to “Build God, Then We’ll Talk”.

Eren took his phone out upon entering the house, Mikasa following behind him, and made a B-line for his bedroom. As he set foot into his bedroom, he heard Mikasa talking to Grisha in the living room, and he shut the door silently behind him before dropping his backpack to the floor and looking down at the screen of his phone.

Three hours ago, Levi had responded to his texts, “okay.”

Eren: Can you get on Skype?

No more than two minutes later, Levi responded “I’m already there, brat.”

The boy walked across his bedroom and slumped into his chair, spinning once before stopping at his laptop and turning it on. He waited for the screen to light up and then signed into Skype. Without even having to wait, the sound of a call waiting filled his room. And of course, he accepted the call, answering on video chat.

“What’d you need?” Levi said just as his face popped up on Eren’s monitor.

“I saw Petra yesterday,” Eren smiled. He would wait for Levi to question what that had to do with anything, which he knew he would.

“Petra? Ah, that’s nice. How is she? What does that have to do with anything?”

The brunette laughed quietly. “She’s good… I took a walk and she gave me a ride home. We talked about you.”

This caught Levi’s attention. His brows rose in curiosity. “Oh? What did you say about me?”

“Well, actually,” Eren began. “I asked how long she knew you. What you were like in middle school and high school. I never knew you guys dated.”

“Yeah, because I never told you we did.” Eren snorted and Levi rolled his eyes, continuing. “Where’re you going with this?”

“I wanna know what happened with your parents when you came out. And Erwin, too.”

“Whoa, where the fuck did that come from? What does that have to do with Petra?” Levi snapped.

Eren shifted in his seat and half-smiled somewhat nervously, wondering if this was the best way to go about it. “Um… when we were talking about you, she told me how you guys became friends and how you broke up with her and came out to her before anyone else, even Erwin, and I asked what happened with your parents when you came out and she said she didn’t know. So I wanted to know. From you. Will you tell me?”

“You wanna know what happened with my parents when I came out? They kicked me out. I already told you that.” Levi folded his arms and leaned back in his chair, glaring at the boy.

“No, I mean… I want to know the whole story. Like, what happened when you told them, and how it went with Erwin, what people said… please?”

There was a long pause between the two of them and Eren thought Levi was about to hang up on him. He braced himself for the ‘connection problem’, and looked down at his keyboard, when Levi finally spoke again. “Alright… But pay attention. I’m not going to repeat myself.”

* * *

It’d been over half a year since Levi had come out to Petra. Six months and four days, not that he was keeping track. She was still the only one that knew, and he knew she was the only one that knew. She wouldn’t tell. She wasn’t much of a gossip.

However, the words she had said to him last December echoed in his head from time to time. _Levi, he’s your best friend. Your_ best _friend._ He cringed at the thought of telling Erwin he reason he had been spending less and less time with him, but knew it was time. 

Now, it was the seventh day into the month of June, and not only that, but Levi was going to seize the opportunity he had, that being Erwin had invited him over to swim as the Smith’s pool had just been cleaned to a sparkling perfection, to tell his best friend that he was gay. Yet, as he parked his car in the driveway that lead up to the larger-than-his-own house, he came to the realization that maybe, just maybe, the best time to tell Erwin wasn’t when they were both shirtless and wet.

_Oh well._

As old habits die hard, he must have pressed his finger against the doorbell ten times before the door opened. Erwin shot him an annoyed look, then graced him with that ever so handsome superhero-like smile. Levi just arched an eyebrow and shoved his way past the taller male without so much as a hello.

“Glad you decided to come over. We haven’t hung out in a while, Levi.”

“Yeah,” Was the response the black haired male gave before glancing toward the sliding glass doors that lead to the pool. “Hey, before we go out there, I need to—”

“Hold that thought. Can I ask you something?” Erwin shut the door and looked down at Levi, something close to concern in his blue eyes.

“That depends on what it is.”

Erwin rolled his eyes and walked past Levi, folding his arms as he did so. “Why’ve you been avoiding me?” He paused. “Well, not so much avoiding me, but you’ve not been here. We haven’t hung out as much, just us. You get a new best friend or something?”

“No,”

“I figured it wasn’t that; no offence but you suck at being social with people, let alone making friends.”

Levi blinked apathetically, however his thoughts were shoving a big middle finger in Erwin’s face. “Okay, and?”

“What’s up with you?”

 _Good a time as any._ “Some things have just come up.” _Try again, Levi._ “I mean… stuff.” _Try being a fucking big boy about things, eh?_ “Let me try that again—”

“Did I do something to upset you or something?” Erwin leaned against the wall, arms still folded. “Because if I did, I’m sorry.”

Shaking his head, Levi shifted his weight to his left foot and looked to the floor. “No, it’s not you.” _Don’t you fucking dare say it._ “It’s me.” _You fucking said it. I swear to god, sometimes I am just the biggest little bitch._

“What do you mean?”

 _Just come right out with it. Literally. Burst through those closet doors and tell him. Spell it out in a song and dance if you have to._ “Sometimes,” Levi began, thinking over his words to choose them carefully. “People change. And it’s not anybody else’s fault—not even the main person involved in the thing—and they can’t tell people that are close to them because of reasons.” _The fuck was that? Did you even try?_

Erwin pursed his lips tightly before rolling his neck and letting out a sigh. “So, you’re telling me what exactly?”

Levi massaged his temples and exhaled. “I’m trying to say it without saying it, but you’re too dense to figure it out.”

“No, the issue here is that you’re dancing around what you’re trying to tell me. You’re beating around the bush. Why won’t you just tell me? What kind of shit are you hiding—”

“So I’m gay.” Levi quickly cut him off.

Erwin grew quiet and Levi watched his expression thoroughly. Neither of them spoke for a while, only standing in the silence between the front door and the kitchen and sliding glass doors. As the silence went on over two minutes, Levi took that as an offer to make his departure. He turned his back to his blond friend and made his way to the door, but stopped when a strong hand found his shoulder.

“Where’re you going?” Erwin asked.

“Home.” Levi stared ahead at the door, keys tight in his grip.

“Why? I thought we were going to swim and hang out today.”

 _What the fuck is this. Is this hope? Does he actually get it or is he just fucking with me?_ “You still want me here?” Levi looked over his shoulder into the blue eyes of his best friend.

He was greeted with a smile. “Why wouldn’t I?”

Levi shifted and pushed Erwin’s hand off of his shoulder, turning his head back and looking back to the door. “I expected a different reaction.”

“Hm,” Erwin snorted. “What, you expected me to ask you to leave after you came out to me? Fuck no. Dude, Levi, you just took a big step. Normally you take baby steps. I’m proud of you.”

“Wait.” Levi cringed, turning completely to Erwin and narrowing his eyes, glaring up at the taller male. “You’re so casual. What the fuck. This is not at all the reaction I expected. Did Petra tell you?”

“Petra knows?”

“Never mind.” Levi paused, shaking his head. “Why are you so casual about it?”

Erwin shrugged, still smiling at his shorter friend. “If not casual, I’d be freaking out right?” Levi nodded. “I don’t see why you think I’d freak out.”

“Because,” Levi grumbled, averting his gaze from Erwin’s. “You’re the sporty type, and you have a shit ton of friends, and you’re cool and whatever else… jocks are normally assholes about shit like this. You know, they’re all about getting the girl and winning the game and—”

“Levi,” Erwin started laughing, and a bit too hard, at Levi’s expense. “Shut the fuck up. What did you think I was gonna do? Tell you to leave?”

“Yeah.” As always, his voice stoic and flat.

The blonde’s laughter came to an abrupt halt and he stared down at Levi. Soft eyes locked on him, digging into him until Levi finally looked up. “You’re my best friend. I wouldn’t do that to you.”

* * *

“Hold on,” Levi stood from his seat and Eren watched him rise, his head going off-screen. “I have to take a piss.”

“Levi!”

“Okay, okay. I’ll finish the fucking story, calm your dick.” He sat back down and sighed. “So, after Erwin and I talked about it and he accepted it, and I explained to him the reason I didn’t tell him sooner was because I felt like he’d think I had a thing for him, and he just laughed, which made me feel like a stupid shit. Then we got awkward—by that, I mean me—and then we went outside to swim. Yeah, that was that. Can I piss now?”

“No, wait, what about your parents? What happened with them?”

Levi sighed and shook his head, shooting a glare at his boyfriend. “Seriously, you want all the fucking details?” Eren nodded and Levi groaned. “Jesus Christ—okay. God, I swear I don’t know who’s worse, you or Hanji.” He adjusted his weight in his seat to get more comfortable, looking away from Eren as he did so, then looking back to see the way-too cheery and hopeful look shining in those perfect green eyes. “So, after I told Erwin, it was only him and Petra that knew for about the rest of June and then some of July.

“A week—I think it was a week—after the fourth, Erwin had finally convinced me to come out to my parents. And yeah, I knew I should have done that back when I had originally come to the conclusion that I was, in fact, playing for the other team. So,” He paused to adjust again, Eren watching his movements closely. “I was at home with the parentals and I was kinda just staring down at my dinner debating how the fuck I was supposed to tell them.

“Mom clangs her fork on her plate and it scared the living hell out of me and I looked up at her, and she asks me what I’m so deep in thought about. At first I’m like ‘nothing important,’ but then I realize it’s fucking important. Really important. Dickloads important. So I look at her and then at my dad and take a deep breath and I asked them if they knew anybody that was gay when they were growing up.

“At first they gave me these weird looks and mom went back to eating. Dad answered for the both of them ‘there weren’t any queers that went to our school.’ Or, he added a minute later, none that they knew of.

“So I went back to staring at my food and finally grew a pair of balls. I stood up and stared them both down—you know what sucks is when you’re five foot three and sixteen and both of your parents are shorter than you, and you realize you won’t be getting any fucking taller. Anyway, I took in a big breath and they both look up at me. You know what I said, Eren?”

“Something like ‘mom, dad, I’m a big angry bag of gay?’” Upon receiving an empty-threated death glare from Levi, Eren retracted into a half-shrug and let out a whimper-laugh that nearly made Levi smirk with satisfaction. “Sorry. What did you say?”

“I told them. I flat out said it. I didn’t act like a little bitch when I told Petra, or beat around the bush when I told Erwin. I just came out and said ‘I’m gay.’”

“And?”

“They laughed. They laughed right in my fucking face.” Eren nodded once, urging Levi on with his eyes. Levi leaned back in his chair and ran his left hand through his hair, pushing his bangs from his face and sighing as they fell back into place. “So instead of shrugging it off and acting like it was all a big joke, the joke they thought it was, I slammed my hands down on the table and told them—no, commanded—that they stop laughing. And they did. I told them I was, and that I was sure of it. Mom shook her head a few times after I said it, and she smiled like I was seriously fucking _joking_.

“So I repeated it. And then my dad stood up and asked me what the fuck possessed me to lie like that. I laughed, Eren, I really did. I laughed really hard, probably harder than I ever have, because the look on their faces when I told them it wasn’t a lie, that I was gay. Oh boy, let me tell you, they didn’t fucking like that. We argued. Literally right over our dinner.

“I tell ‘em that nothing they say is going to change my mind, that I’ve known for over a year. Mom begged me to stop joking, and… well… my dad was literally turning red. I’ve never seen someone’s face turn that shade of red, Eren. Like, he was fucking pissed…” Levi trailed off.

“Then what happened?” Eren pressed after a moment.

“Dad paced around the table and grabbed my shoulders and shook me like he was trying to shake the gay out of me—” Levi snorted. “—I looked him dead in the eye and said ‘you’ve been raising a gay child your whole life. How does that make you feel?’ and I couldn’t even get all of the words out before he fucking slapped me. Mom was crying. I’m not sure if it was because of me coming out, the fact that I wouldn’t shrug it off as a joke, or the fact that she just watched her husband hit her child. Whatever reason, she was bawling like a baby. My dad told me that faggots aren’t welcomed in his home and told me to get out. So I grabbed my backpack and my keys and my phone. Thank god my keys were in my fuckin’ pocket.

“Of course, first person I got to is Erwin. The only person I needed to go to was Erwin. I pulled up in his driveway—his parents were home this time so I was kind of anxious about walking up and knocking on the door. But I did anyway. I rang the doorbell a good forty-six times before Erwin’s mom answered the door. I don’t know why, but as soon as she opened the door and looked at me, she pulled me into her arms and hugged me, and then she called Erwin in from the kitchen.

“His mom invited me in and shut the door behind me and then she walked away and left me and Erwin to talk. I think he already knew what was wrong with me before I even opened my mouth. I didn’t even realize I was crying until he put his arm around me and we left the den and he took me up to his room, and we talked. I told him what happened, and he almost immediately told me I was allowed to stay with him and his family. Erwin was seventeen, turning eighteen in October, and my birthday wasn’t too far behind even though I was only going to be seventeen, but he assured me that even when he moved out of his parents place that I was going to have a stay wherever he went.

“At first, I was kind of iffy on staying with them. I say on the couch in the den after we went back downstairs and he explained the situation to his parents. Get this: not every adult at the time was a major asshole. They welcomed me into their home with open arms…” Levi looked up at his monitor and saw the perplexed expression on Eren’s face. “And then after he and I both graduated, he got an apartment, and we stayed there until he went off to do his business shit in college. The apartment is mine now, and he lives in nice house on his own. Offered me to stay there but I told him I was accustomed to the little apartment. Anyway… that’s my story. Answer all your questions?”

Eren nodded slowly, mouth half-open. “Levi…”

“Erwin’s a pretty fucking awesome guy, despite the shit I say about him.” Levi noted. “Anyway… Fucking Christ, it’s already nine. God damn it, Eren, I was actually planning on going to get something cooked to eat.” And he nearly laughed at the lost puppy-like expression that took over Eren’s face. “Relax shithead. Anyway, I’m gonna make some cereal or something. Do your homework, I know you have some.”

Eren watched wordlessly as Levi shifted, and before the older man could hang up the video call, Eren waved his hands in front of his webcam. “Levi!”

“What is it?” He paused, looking up at the webcam.

“Thank you for telling me all of that. I’m sorry about all of it…”

Levi shrugged. “Eh. Don’t be. If I never did any of it, it never would’ve lead to me meeting you, now would it?”

A light blush light up Eren’s cheeks and he smiled brightly. “You’re being cute.”

“Am I? Ew. I’ll have to work on that. Anyway, I’m hungry and I really have to pee. Bye.”

“I love you,” Eren stated firmly.

Playfully, Levi rolled his eyes. However, he knew… “I love you too, Eren.”

The call ended.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> __  
> **OKAY SO I HAVE SO MUCH FLUFF PLANNED FOR THE NEXT 7 CHAPTERS YOU GUYS DON'T EVEN UNDERSTAND.**  
>  Also, because I feel i should mention it;  
> Eren's class schedule:  
> 1st Period: English III/Literature Mon-Fri  
> 2nd Period: Math Mon-Fri  
> 3rd Period: Biology Mon/Wed; History Tues/Thurs; Study Hall on Friday  
> Lunch tiem C:  
> 4th Period: Physical Education.
> 
> That was important to know. Because it was. Alright.


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not much of Eren in this chapter, as it mainly revolves around Hanji and Levi finally developing a friendship. However, we learn what happened to Eren's mom, and then a birthday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THERE IS SOME FRENCH IN THIS CHAPTER, YO.

_September 3rd_

“Eren looks depressed.” Jean mumbled to Armin as their group got settled in at their favorite table in the cafeteria.

He did indeed look depressed. His eyes were puffy and red, his cheeks were damp, and he looked like he wanted to throw up. His arms were folded in front of him on the table and he stared down at the table.

Armin looked across from his spot to look at Eren, his eyes full of understanding. The then turned to Jean and shook his head as if saying _don’t push him today._

Lunch would end and gym would follow as it always did, and the boys would do whatever it is they were instructed; laps, weights, pull ups, whatever. Eren was obviously not up to participating. He would run the laps, but he would lag far behind the other boys and would stop to walk every now and then instead of forcing himself on and in the front of the line as he always did. He does the weights, but he wouldn’t do them equally to each arm. Two lifts to the right, one to the left, three to the right, two to the left, one to the right, four to the left. He wouldn’t do the pull ups. He would just hang there, holding himself off the ground with the bar, and literally just hang there.

Shadis was in no mood to deal with him or reprimand him, and when gym ended, it ended the same as always. The boys went into the locker room to change, and as always, left in their respected groups.

Eren sat on the grass with his back against the fence, staring off into space with his knees pulled up to his chest. Jean and Armin stood in their usual spots, Jean’s arm around the shorter male, waiting for the bell to ring so they could leave. As always, it would ring, and Jean and Armin would go off and Eren would wait for Mikasa to drive up to get him.

Pulling his seatbelt down and clicking it in, Jean turned to Armin. “So, what’s up with him?

Armin let out a sigh, pulling his own seatbelt down in the same moment. “You’ve known him for three years, been friends with him for two, and you don’t know?”

“Is it some big secret? You know Eren doesn’t tell me shit.” Jean snorted, putting his key in ignition and backing out of the school parking lot.

“No. Well, kind of, but not really. I guess it’s better that I’m one of the only people who know… he doesn’t like to be reminded of it from others.”

“Reminded of what?”

Armin shifted uncomfortably in his seat and looked away from his boyfriend, placing his hands in his lap and looking down at them. “Seven years ago today, his mom died…”

Jean furrowed his brows, staring uneasily out the windshield and at the road as he turned out of the parking lot. “Oh… How did she… I mean… was she sick? Or…”

Nodding, Armin glanced at Jean with a small frown. “Yeah. She has really sick… she had schizophrenia and bad nightmares that made it worse, it worried Mr. Jaeger and Eren and Mikasa a lot. 

“One time… I remember, I spent the night at Eren’s house, and we were eating breakfast, and Mikasa turned to Mrs. Jaeger and was about to tell her something… but just as she opened her mouth, Mrs. Jaeger jerked toward Eren and grabbed his shoulder and told him that she refuses to let him join the… Scouting Legion? Or something like that, it was so long ago it’s a wonder I remember that. Anyway, really bad schizophrenia. 

“Mr. Jaeger got her a prescription for something to calm her nerves. I think it made her loopy… I don’t remember all the details, but Eren told me that they had to take her to the hospital. She was there for three days; sometimes she’d be calm… but a lot of times when Eren and Mikasa would go in to visit, I was with them one time, and she’d ask if they got enough firewood or if Eren had gotten into any fights that Mikasa had to rescue him from, things like that.” Armin let out a sigh. “It’s really not my place to tell you all of that… sorry. You know what schizophrenia is, right?”

Jean took a moment to let all that Armin had told him sink in. “Um… vaguely. Explain it in layman’s terms.”

“It’s a long-term mental disorder of a type involving a breakdown in the relation between thought, emotion, and behavior, leading to faulty perception, inappropriate actions and feelings, withdrawal from reality and personal relationships into fantasy and delusion, and a sense of mental fragmentation.”

“Damn… so did she die in the hospital? If schizophrenia is a mental disorder then how did it—”

Armin cut him off. “It’s not my place to tell you. If you want to know all that happened then you should ask Eren.”

“How would I go about that? He doesn’t even know that I know about his mom.”

Shrugging, Armin let out a gloomy sigh. “Then I guess you won’t…”

* * *

_September 5th_

“Thanks for the coffee.”

Hanji smiled, watching Levi sip from the Starbucks cup as they made their way across campus to the building. “It’s my job, Rivaille.”

“You know, I’d much rather you call me Levi.” He moved the cup from his lips and walked through the door Hanji held open for him.

She followed behind him. “I’ve been addressing you by your last name for a month now, though.”

Levi shrugged. “So stop. ‘Levi’ is easier to say, is it not?”

“It is. But it’s not unique like _Rivaille_. And I told you I like unique things.”

He rolled his eyes. “Whatever, shitty glasses.”

“And another thing, your jokes. Do they always have to do with shit, or were you constipated a lot as a child and that’s the only humor you’re accustomed to?”

Levi almost laughed, but his expression remained the same as he composed himself. “No. Now come on, you’re slow as fuck. Maybe you’re the one that’s constipated.”

Hanji snorted. “No, you’re just a fast five-foot fuck.”

“Five foot three, mind you.” He replied, glancing over his shoulder to look at her.

As he did, two girls that he knew as Rene and Ilse ran up to Hanji’s side, and in heavy French accent’s they sang the happy birthday song.

“Aw!” Hanji giggled. “You guys remembered!”

“But of course,” Rene smiled. “Why would we not remember it? It is an important day, after all.”

“How many years old are you now, Hanji?” Ilse questioned her.

Levi turned, as Hanji had stopped walking when the two girls met up with her, and he waited somewhat patiently for her. Tapping his foot, he took another sip of his coffee. _It’s her birthday?_

“Twenty-four,” She hummed, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “Okay, me and Riv—... Levi are going to be late for our lecture, so I’ll see you girls later, alright?”

“Right.” Rene nodded.

“Be seeing you, then,” Ilse hooked her arm with Rene’s and they slid away.

Hanji looked to Levi and then continued her stride from before, and Levi moved to match her pace, walking by her side now. “It’s your birthday?”

“I’m old, I know, shut up.”

He shook his head and looked forward. “Not really. I’ll be the same in December.”

“Hm? You’re going to be twenty-four too? Jeez, I thought you were like eighteen, and even then you’re short—”

“I was going to attempt being friendly, but you just put your foot in your mouth.”

“Sorry, hehe…” She rubbed the back of her head and opened the door to the lecturing hall. Levi walked inside ahead of her and she skipped behind him, up the stair path to where they would sit during the lecture. They had a few minutes to spare. “So, you gonna get me something for my birthday?”

“You seem to be forgetting I hate you.”

“Ah, right,” She rolled her eyes and leaned back in her chair. “So that’s a no, right?”

Levi just shot her a glare and she changed the subject. “At the risk of sounding like a broken record, how’s Eren?”

“Something’s gonna get broken if you keep bringing him up.” Even after a month, Levi was still upset at Hanji for butting into his personal life and prying every so often to hear about her not-quite friend’s adorable boyfriend. Despite his current disliking of her, he couldn’t help but smile at the thought of Eren itself. “He’s great.”

“So then there have been no fights or arguments that I have to sneakily mend for you?” Surprisingly, in the small timespan of a month, Hanji had become far too comfortable with teasing Levi.

“Wow, it’s like you’re just asking me to drown you in a river or something.”

“But you won’t.”

He scoffed. “You want to bet?”

Hanji shook her head quickly and pushed out a laugh. “Nah, you seem like the kind of guy that’ll pull through with a bet even if it’s against your morals.”

“Admitting you’ll lose the bet right off the bat. Smart.”

As the lecture hall filled up and the professor stepped inside, Levi silently watched Hanji pull her notebooks and pencils from her messy backpack, debating whether or not he should drown her or get her something for her birthday after all.

*

“Where are you going? It’s not time for our last lecture.” Hanji said between mouthfuls of the pasta she bought for lunch. She had learned in the last week that if she spoke with food in her mouth, Levi would kick her in the shin and spout out how nasty and gross and unladylike it was.

“I forgot I had a previous engagement and I need to go before our next lesson.” He dumped what remained of his lunch into the trashcan, cringed at the scent coming from it when he pushed the plate inside and discarded its remnants, and turned to Hanji. “If I’m late, cover for me.”

“Eh—you’re not playing hooky are you? I almost got in trouble for you last time.”

He shook his head. “I said if. Bye,” And was out the door before she could respond.

September in France was quite nice. The breeze was pleasant as it made contact with Levi’s skin and blew his hair out from his eyes. It was then that he realized something, and he groaned as he walked down the sidewalk. He pulled his phone from his pocket and selected the contact he hadn’t talked since two weeks before he left for France.

_Ring._

_Ring._

_Ring._

“Mn… Hello?” The voice answered with a yawn and Levi listened, hearing the adjustment of a blanket over a body.

“I keep forgetting there’s a five hour time difference.” He paused and heard the sweet hum of a response from the girl. “Petra, it’s Levi. I need a favor.”

“At seven thirty in the morning, huh…” She yawned again. “Alright… what’s up?”

“So, I have this friend—”

“Really?” Petra cut him off sounding slightly more awake and mildly surprised.

“Fuck you.” Levi sighed.

She laughed tiredly. “Sorry, go on?”

“I have this friend—well now that I think about it I sort of hate her, but still—and it’s her birthday. I just found out that it’s her birthday, and I don’t know what to get her, and I felt like I should get her something. I hate her, a lot, you don’t understand Petra, she’s fucking crazy,” he paused to take in a breath and heard a mhm from his friend on the other line. “and even though I hate her, I’ve kind of put her through a small hell in the last month and feel like I should get her something. Thing is, I don’t know what to get her. You’re he only girl I’ve ever bought for, but I don’t think she’s the kind of person that would appreciate earrings.”

There was a long pause and Levi wondered if Petra had fallen asleep while he explained. He was about to hang up when her small voice made itself audible again. “What is she like?”

He had to think it over. “She’s kind of like Eren. She has messy brown hair and is loud and annoying as fuck. She’s got glasses, too. She takes a lot of notes during our lectures and is always studying and doing homework when she’s not annoying the piss out of me. She’s also really messy. She shoves her papers and stuff into her bag and I can tell you her bedroom is probably worse off than that.”

“Okay… Personality wise?”

“Like I said, similar to Eren. Except she’s surprisingly smart and really studious when taking notes and studying, as I said before.”

Petra began to hum as she thought over the possibilities. “Well, you could get her something to help her organize, if she has trouble keeping track of things… you could get herrrr books, if she likes to read? What kind of things does she like? Do you know?”

“She likes unique things. She doesn’t even let me call her by her first name because her last name sounds more—” Despite Petra not being able to see the motion over the phone, Levi did air quotes. “Unique.”

“You could get her a manga,” Petra offered, the sleepy tone returning to her voice. “I mean, I dunno. She sounds like the type of person that would like that…”

“Hm… alright. Thanks Petra. Did I wake you?”

“Nah… well yeah, I had to get up in a few minutes for work anyway so it’s no big deal. It’s good to hear from you again.”

“Yeah you too.”

“Well,” She made a strange noise, indicating she was stretching. “I have to shower and junk. You should call me again sometime, Levi. I miss you.”

“Mhm, you too. Bye,”

“Bye,”

*

“Bienvenue, monsieur. Comment puis-je vous aider?” The woman at the front desk of the bookstore greeted Levi as he stepped inside.

“Anglais?” Levi requested. 

The woman slowly nodded. “Yes I speak English. Sorry if this is bad, however. Do you know what you are looking for, or do you need help making a selection?”

“Yeah. I need a manga. Not for me, for a friend. Today’s her birthday and I was told she might like manga. In English, please?”

“Manga? Okay, wait, laisse-moi voir...” The woman walked away from the counter and lead Levi to a section in the back of the bookstore, shelves lined with Manga and other comics. “For a girl, you said?”

“A woman. She’s twenty-four. Vingt-quatre.” He repeated in French.

“Une femme? Ah, je sais que la chose parfaite! Perfect for her,” She reached onto the shelf and handed Levi a paperback book with a very colorful coverage of a man holding another man. 

Levi didn’t pay much attention to the picture as he scanned the side and then the back of the book looking for a price tag. It was decently priced and he nodded. “Alright, thanks.”

The two of them walked to the counter together and Levi paid for the manga, and the woman smiled as she handed him his change. “J'espère que votre ami aime le manga. I do hope she likes it.”

Giving his thanks to the woman, Levi left with the manga in his hand and upon exiting the store he put it inside of the pocket of his backpack that was only supplied with pencils. He made his way back to the college with plenty of time to get to class. He would give Hanji her gift once class was over.

-

As they say down at the table they often chose at the café, Levi told Hanji to go and get him his usual tea and whatever she wanted, and when she left to do so he took the manga out of his backpack and held it in his lap waiting for Hanji to return.

“Here ya go, Levi,” She placed the plate with the small teacup in front of him and sat in the other chair, a chocolate cupcake with strawberry icing in her hand. “Happy birthday to me,” She hummed quietly and put the cupcake to her mouth to dig in.

Levi held up the book and extended his arm to hold it out to her. “Yeah. Happy birthday to you. Here.”

Icing coloring her lips and the skin surrounding them pink, she examined the book in Levi’s hand before taking it and smiling. “ _You're My Loveprize in Viewfinder_? Goodness Levi, I had no idea you had an eye for yaoi. Though, I guess it should’ve been evident with your current relationship.”

His eyebrows rose in slight confusion. “What the fuck is yaoi?”

Hanji burst out in laughter. “You got me a boy-on-boy manga for my birthday. How did you do that without knowing what yaoi is?”

“The lady at the bookstore recommended it—oh my god… this is _porn?_ ”

“Yes, very much so. You really didn’t know? Have you never been on Tumblr?”

“What the fuck is Tumblr?”

Shaking her head, Hanji placed the book in her lap and snorted. “I have so much to teach you about the world, Levi. Anyway, thanks for the present, I appreciate it. Though, I thought you hated me. People that hate other people don’t often give other people gifts.”

“I had a change of heart. God... I can’t believe I bought you porn.”

“Not so loud; you want everyone to know you bought me—” her voice suddenly rose. “GAY JAPANESE PORN?”

People turned to send strange looks at their table—at Levi. “Shut the fuck up!”

Hanji couldn’t help but cackle. “Oh my god, this is rich, okay, I’m sorry. Thanks, Levi, really, thanks. It’s great. I love you, thank you.”

“Ew, no, don’t say that.”

“So, hey,” She opened the manga and scanned through the pages for a certain picture. Stopping and smirking, she held the book out so Levi could see the very sexual act drawn on the page. “Have you done anything like _this_ with Eren?”

Levi could feel his face heat up and he shrunk back in his seat, unable to take his eyes off of the picture until Hanji pulled the manga and took another bite of her cupcake. He didn’t answer, but the glare he was forcing was an obvious NO, and Hanji didn’t press the matter on.

 _I bought her porn. Not only did I buy her porn, but it’s gay porn. Not only did I buy her gay porn, but it was for her birthday. Jesus Christ_ —he cringed as his thoughts took a deviant turn— _I wonder if Eren would do those things with me... Oh god—no, Levi, shit, stop!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the plot thickens!


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some more birthdays happen; Levi calls Erwin names because best friends do that shit. Also, Hanji has an amazing idea, and Jean does a thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I lied, the fluff will probably be starting the middle of the next chapter, or starting on 22, because I change my mind on something. I really just used this chapter as an excuse to have Levi call Erwin an old fart.
> 
> Sexual thingies near the end of the chapter. I would rate it E but that's not for another 3ish chapters. Also, thanks to Kirschnickerdoodle for helping me with a certain scene at the bottom, as I was in no mood or state to write it.

The rest of the month of September went by quickly and peacefully. Eren and Grisha had begun talking again; not conversations that could last for hours, but small father/son greetings. Grisha was often out of the house the last week of September, and near the start of October he had to go back on call. He informed Mikasa and Eren that he would for sure be back before Thanksgiving. With hugs and a “goodbye,” he left the house, leaving Eren and Mikasa alone for another month.

-

_October 14th_

“Hello?” 

“Eh—Erwin,”

“Levi? Hello—it’s midnight there. You should be in bed.”

“No, fuck you, it’s your birthday.”

“What? No, that’s tomorrow—oh.”

“Yeah, _oh_. I wanted to be the first to tell you; those shitstains you work with don’t deserve to be the first.”

Erwin smiled and let out a happy sigh. “That’s very thoughtful. I haven’t talked to you since the twenty-third of last month. How are you?”

“What happened to—” Levi deepened his voice, attempting to imitate Erwin but only sounding as though he were out of breath. “—‘You should be in bed, Levi’?—” He returned to his natural voice. “Hm?”

“Oh, sorry, bye th—”

“Don’t be an idiot, I’m joking.” Levi sighed and couldn’t help but let out a small laugh. “I’m great. Things have been going great. I’m making fucking fantastic grades, I hate to say it but thanks to Hanji's help.”

“Don’t you despise her?”

“People have a change of heart. She’s not as horrible as I thought—though she is pretty fucking horrible. Anyway, I’d say she’s my…” Levi cringed and forced the word passed his lips. “ _Ffffriend_ now. Kind of. You remember the story about her birthday—”

“Ah yes, did you bond over that porn?” Erwin snorted.

“Wow, okay, fuck you.”

Between breaths, Erwin apologized. “I’m sorry, I can’t help it. That story was too much for me.”

“Immature shitlicker.” Levi grumbled. “So, what are your birthday plans?”

There was a pause. “I’m going to meet up with Auruo and Petra and the others and they’re taking me out for lunch. Petra says whether I want to or not, I’m eating the cake she made.”

“Petra makes good cakes.”

“That she does. Then I’m going to dinner with my family. I haven’t seen my sister in two months and I’m remotely excited about family time.”

Levi cringed. Family. “Oh. Fun. You’re getting old, you know?”

“I’m twenty-five.”

“That’s old as shit you old fart.”

Erwin couldn’t help but laugh again. “Don’t forget you’ll be twenty-four in two months, and then in a year you’ll be an old fart right along with me.”

“I don’t age, don’t you know what by now?” Levi snickered.

As his best friend, Erwin knew the perfect blow to knock Levi down a size. “You don’t grow either.”

“I take back the ‘happy birthday’. I hope you have a shitty time.”

“Oh come on, Levi. Let me have the one laugh.”

“My height isn’t a joke.” Levi braced himself for the impending sarcasm that was bound to come from this comment.

Erwin blew off the chance, however, in not-quite fear that Levi would hang up on him for what he would say. “Levi it’s twelve fifteen there. Go to bed.”

“I’m not tired.”

“Aren’t you? I remember you telling me the last time you were up until two thirty you didn’t go in to class.”

“Yeah, but it’s twelve.” Levi protested.

“Go to bed.”

“At twelve thirty.”

Erwin sighed but smiled all the same. “So, you’re only going to be there until December, right?”

There was a long pause between the two; the only sound from Levi’s line was a hum in thought before he answered. “I was actually considering finishing the course all together. I mean, why literally half-ass it?”

“Oh. Have you told Eren?”

 _Fuck._ “No.”

Without a hint of sarcasm, Erwin responded. “That’s kind of an important thing, Levi.”

“I just haven’t gotten around to it yet…” Levi pulled his knees up to his chest, his feet up on his bed now. The light in his room was off and his eyes had begun to droop.

“When was the last time you spoke to him?”

“Yesterday.”

“You talk to him every weekend, don’t you?”

“I do. Sometimes on weekdays.”

“Levi—”

Levi cut him off, his voice rough as though trying to convince Erwin to drop the topic. “Look, I know what you’re going to say, alright? You’re going to say ‘oh, Eren has the right to know’, yada-yada, all that bullshit, right? I know he does, I just haven’t told him yet.”

“I wasn’t going to say that at all.” Erwin snickered. Getting serious again, he silently cleared this throat. “Are you coming back for Christmas so I can wish you a happy birthday?”

“I don’t know—”

“Speaking of Christmas!” Erwin suddenly gasped, nearly shouting into the receiver making Levi flinch. “What do you want?”

“Nothing.”

“Okay, that’s a lie. What do you want for Christmas?”

“I don’t want anything—”

“You don’t want to see Eren?”

Levi shrugged as thought Erwin could see this. “I do.”

“You should come down here for Christmas then.”

He thought about it. He thought about it a lot. As originally planned, Levi was going to come back after the semester ended and he was going to finish the college year back in America after Christmas. However, he learned the curriculum is far different between France and America. He decided he didn’t want to talk about his decisions right now, and not to Erwin, the ‘god of all good doing’. “I’m going to bed now.”

Erwin was satisfied, knowing how hard Levi would debate over going back for Christmas. He knew how much Levi cared for that stupid teenager five months away from his eighteenth birthday. “Okay. Goodnight, Levi.”

“Happy birthday you old fucker,” Levi said before hanging up. He set his phone down beside his lamp and grumbled profanities as he pulled his blanket up and over his head. _God damn it, Erwin. How am I supposed to get any sleep thinking about Christmas and Eren?_

-

October flew by; Halloween wasn’t much of a child’s holiday for the group of sixteen-seventeen-eighteen year olds, even though they still ended up dressing up and going door to door for candy and receiving remarks on how they looked to be too hold to go trick-or-treating.

Mikasa was making straight A’s and Eren making slightly above average. He had been studying a bit more with his sister and Annie, which helped him greatly even though a lot of times Mikasa would say it was time to study for honors bio, and she and Annie would go to study in her bedroom, leaving Eren in the living room with all of his books and unfinished homework.

He knew, oh yes, he knew very well of his sister’s current relationship with Annie. As hard as Mikasa tried to hide it around him, it was really obvious. “I know you and Annie are girlfriends,” He had mumbled to her the first day of November when eating dinner.

She had responded with a laugh, trying to hide it further, but Eren just shrugged. “Everyone is gay and nothing hurts.” And Mikasa merely nodded with a smile that she no longer had to try to keep it a secret around her brother. Especially after the sly remark of “besides, you’re a shitty secret keeper.”

-

_November 2nd_

Armin mashed the buttons and turned the dials of the stereo of Jean’s car as the taller teen drove. They were on their way to Jean’s house because Jean stated he forgot Armin’s present. Seeing as Armin’s actual birthday was on Sunday, Jean and the others had planned to take him out on Saturday, leaving the family party for Sunday.

“Eren is gonna be annoyed that we’re late—”

Jean cut him off by turning a sharp left and the boy nearly slammed his head against the window. “Oh, sorry, ha-ha. Don’t worry about it, Armin, he’ll be fine.”

Armin kept quiet but began to fidget after he found the radio station he wanted. Some Lady Gaga song was playing as they drove up into Jean’s driveway.

“Come in with me, it may be a minute,”

“Jeeeeeeeean—” Armin tried to complain as Jean parked. 

The taller male leaned over to the passenger seat and stopped Armin’s protest by kissing him on the lips. Armin didn’t kiss back at first but as he finally did and leaned in closer to do so and part his lips, Jean pulled back and jumped out of the car. “Come on, Armin!”

Sighing, Armin unbuckled his seatbelt and got out, shutting the door behind him. He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jacket, the frigid November air getting to him already. He followed Jean to the front door, pausing to look behind him at the empty driveway (aside from Jean’s car).

“Your parents aren’t home?”

“Nah, they went on a date or some shit like that.” Jean pushed the key into the lock and turned the knob, opening the door after doing so.

Armin followed Jean inside and passed him, as he did Jean laid a hand on the blonde’s shoulder. Before Jean could speak, Armin jerked around to face him. “If they jump out to scare me, I’m going to be mad.”

Shocked, Jean turned the light on. “How did you—”

“Surprise…?” Eren popped up from behind the couch and Sasha and Connie stepped out of their places beside Eren, and Mikasa and Annie stepped out from behind the wall separating the kitchen from the living room.

“Well, so much for that.” Connie sighed.

Armin snickered and turned back to face his other friends. “You guys must think I’m not smart enough to figure something like this out?”

“I’d hope you wouldn’t,” Jean said, sighing, and wrapping his arm around Armin’s shoulder. “I thought I did a good job of hiding it.”

“I told you we should’ve had it at my house,” Eren mumbled under his breath.

-

“Levi, go.”

He looked up from his French textbook to face Hanji who had let her hair down and it messily flow over her shoulders. “What?”

“Your turn. I’ve already asked like three things.”

He nodded. “Right, hold on.” He looked down and scanned the back of the textbooks dictionary that lead into the English-to-French portion. “Um… Avez-vous l'intention de retourner aux Etats de voir votre famille pour Thanksgiving?”

“That one is too easy,” Hanji looked over the rim of her glasses. She didn’t allow him to mentally flip her the bird before she answered his question in the same language. “Et non, je ne fais pas. Mes parents ont toujours eu à travailler par cette journée donc je vais probablement juste Skype avec Mike ce jour-là.”

“Okay, that sentence is too fucking long.” Levi shot an annoyed glare at her. They had been studying French for the past two hours, it was nearly nine and if Hanji didn’t leave soon he’d have to deal with her for a longer, much more complicated process that involved breaking curfew. “What’d you say?”

“I said I won’t because my parent’s both have always had to work through Thanksgiving. So I’m probably just going to Skype with Mike that Thursday.”

Levi nodded though he didn’t really care all that much. “Your turn.”

“Qu'en pensez-vous?”

“What do I think about what?”

Hanji cringed. “Ehh, I meant ‘what about you’. Like, do you have plans to head back?”

“Oh. No. Not really.”

Hanji eyed him, suddenly full of curiosity. “Tu vas les voir pour Noël?” She paused and began bouncing excitedly in her seat, not even having to look at the English-to-French transition in her dictionary. “Tu ne vas pas rester sur le campus comme deux semaines sont vous, parce que ça serait tellement ennuyeux! Dites-moi, avez-vous des plans pour voir Eren? Oh s'il vous plaît dites-moi que vous le faites, ce serait tellement romantique!”

Levi stared at her. “Slow the fuck down. One question at a time.”

She stared back. “Are you going to go and see Eren for Christmas?”

He groaned and leaned back on the wall his bed was against. “Erwin ask me that a little under a month ago. Why does it matter?”

“Well he’s your boyfriend; I just thought it’d be sweet. Are you getting him anything?”

“I don’t know. I planned on getting him something, but I’m not entirely sure he’d like anything I picked out.”

Hanji looked back down at her French text book as though deep in thought. Suddenly, she jumped up and dropped the book on the floor and lunged across the room onto Levi’s bed. She grasped his shoulders and shook him. “BRING HIM TO FRANCE!”

He quickly shoved her off of him as soon as the words left her lips and she fell ass first onto the floor. “Bring him to—are you fucking crazy? I’ve been with him since April; I don’t think a foreign getaway is a very appropriate ‘first Christmas together’ gift.”

Shaking her head quickly, she rose to her feet and giggled excitedly, mumbling things so quietly in French that Levi didn’t even attempt to translate. Finally, her voice rose and she threw her hands up. “But it’s _perfect!_ You can go back to the states for the first week and chillax with your family and the friends I know you have—Erwin, at least—and Eren, and—” She squealed. “And then you bring him here as his present! Oh, _oh_ my god, oh _my_ god it would be the most romantic thing in the world! Nicholas Sparks would write fucking books about it—”

“Whoa, whoa, shut the fuck up a minute. Firstly, wouldn’t me going back to see him for Christmas be his present?”

“Well if you wanna make it seem like you’re a conceited asshole that’s all he wants for Christmas, then yeah.” She snorted. “But no, listen, it would be so cute and sweet and thoughtful and you could take him to the Eiffel Tower and you could tell him you loved him and—”

“Stop right there.”

“—you guys could go to—oh wait, why stop? What I say?”

“I’m not ready to tell him that.”

Hanji shot him a glare that wasn’t meant to strike him with fear—and it didn’t—before she folded her arms and sighed. “When you say ‘you too’ to someone after they say they love you normally means you’ve said it back.”

“I didn’t mean it. I said it another time… but I’m not sure if I meant it.”

“You totally meant it.” Hanji snickered. “Speaking of, when was the last time you called him? I wanna say hi!”

“Like I’d let you talk to him.” He glanced over at his phone. “I haven’t talked to him since Wednesday night. He’s been busy.”

“Doing what?”

“Planning his friend’s surprise party or something.”

“Call him.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Yes you do.” Hanji deadpanned.

Levi did want to. He didn’t want Hanji to be there when he did, but he wanted to call Eren. So badly. He wanted to talk to him, intentionally insult him and make him laugh, and most of all to hear him.

“Call him. I won’t talk, I promise.”

“…Okay.”

Levi put his book to the side and reached over to grab his phone from beside the lamp. He hesitated when selecting Eren’s contact, glancing up at Hanji who didn’t make any motion to leave. She just sat there with a content smile, arms folded in her lap in his desk chair.

_Ring._

_Ring._

_Ring._

“Hello?”

“Eren—”

“Hey, hold on just a sec—” There was muffled shouting followed by loud laughter and Hanji snickered, tying her hair back up while Levi sat there listening to muffled noises, including a part of a song by The Offspring just before Eren answered; _now dance fucker, dance._ “Okay, okay sorry, heh, loud music.”

“What are you doing?” Levi looked away from Hanji as her eyes dug into him.

“Armin’s birthday party. What’s up?”

“Oh. Um.” Why had he called Eren again? “Having fun?”

“Yeah,” He said cheerfully. “It was supposed to be a surprise party but he’s too fuckin’ smart for us. What’re you doing?”

What was he doing? Levi looked down at his textbook. “Studying.”

“Oh. Well, if you called me for help I can guarantee you I probably can’t assist you in college work—oh hey, I made an A on my History test on Friday. I wanted to tell you earlier but I thought you were busy. Sorry.”

 _Even when he’s with friends he still talked to me. Fucking Eren, why do you try to be so good to me._ “Sorry? Good for you, that brain of yours is working, huh.”

“That’s not funny.” Eren mumbled.

Levi looked back up to see Hanji mouthing the word ‘speaker’ and shook his head. Large brown puppy-like eyes stared at him as she mouthed it again and he sighed. ‘Fine,’ he mouthed back and hit the button on his phone.

“I think it is. Anyway, tell Armin I said happy birthday I guess.”

“I will,” Eren’s voice filled the room and Hanji giggled. “Does that mean you’re gonna go?”

“Um… no. There was actually something I wanted to talk to you about.” Hanji stared at him, almost as though she were shocked, large eyes screaming out _ARE YOU GOING TO BRING HIM!?_

“Huh? Okay, sure. Go ahead.” Eren’s voice cheerful as always.

Levi shifted uncomfortably on his bed, crossing his left ankle over his right and looked away from Hanji again. “So, you know I’m coming back for Christmas, right?”

“Yeah!” Levi could almost hear Eren smiling. “I’m excited, I can’t wait to see you again. I miss you a lot.”

Hanji wiggled around at the desk, nearly sliding out of the chair as she flailed her arms around. Levi shot her a glare, _what are you, five?_ “Well, I have good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?”

Eren didn’t respond for a minute and Levi silently sighed. Hanji pulled her knees up to her chest, her feet now in the chair, and bounced excitedly waiting for Eren to respond as though she knew something he didn’t. “Uh… bad, I guess. Yeah, bad.”

“I’m staying for the spring semester.” Eren groaned but Levi didn’t give him time to protest. “Stop, shut up, let me finish. After that, I’m coming back for good. Okay?”

“Was… that the good news?”

“Kind of. But it’s also that I’m going to be with for your two weeks, so stop being a bitch and be happy.” His tone was far too harsh for how he meant which made Hanji cringe slightly.

“Two weeks…”

“Well two and a half. I get the same time off as you, I think.”

“That’s… awesome! Great, I’m so excited. Man—I can’t wait for you to come back, I miss you so much. I miss—”

Levi cut him off. “Yeah, I miss you too; don’t you have a party to get back to?”

“Oh, yeah, you’re right, I do! Ha-ha, sorry, I…” His voice grew calm and level and smooth, hardly sounding anything like the hyperactive angry Eren that Levi had come to know. “…I just can’t wait to see you again. Three months is a long time, you know.”

Hanji looked as though she were about to burst into tears and Levi stared silently at his bedroom floor when he replied. “I know…”

Muffled music began playing in the background as Levi assumed Eren was heading back into whatever room the party was mostly taking place. “Bye Levi.”

Levi waited to hear _it_ as Eren waited to hear ‘goodbye’ from him, but there was nothing. Levi frowned, almost as though he needed to hear _it_. Hanji cocked her head to the left and the man mumbled into the phone. “What the fuck, Eren.”

“Wh—”

“Have fun, don’t do drugs, stay sober, make good choices—” He stopped himself just short of making a graduation-style speech. “—and I love you. Dumbass brat.”

Another pause, though short. “I-I love you too.” Levi’s thumb hovered over the ‘end’ button. “…so much.”

Hanji stared at the black haired man as he smiled a small, warm smile, far different from the icy looks of ‘fuck you’ she often saw Levi with. “Go back to your party now. I’ll steal you away from everyone in a month and you can tell me how much you love me then.” The brunette female nearly burst into laughter at the sentence, depicting it in her head as far more sensual than Levi intended.

“Okay…” Eren’s voice trailed off and both Hanji and Levi could tell the boy was blushing. “Bye,”

“Buh-bye.”

Levi ended the call. He braced himself for the endless screams of _OH MY GOD_ that would surely come from Hanji, and sure enough—

“You—YOU! Levi, you fucking—you said—oh my god, I _can’t_ , I seriously can’t!” She wrapped her arms around herself and shook intensely as though she was cold. “You said it first this time. YOU SAID—”

“Could you be any louder?” Levi snapped at her. He didn’t realize his cheeks were a light shade of red.

-

Eren stepped back into the room and just as he did so Sasha took his hand in hers and dragged him over to the rest of the group with crumbs from some type of chip on her face. “Jeez Eren, we thought you left.”

“Look at his face,” Annie snorted as Eren sat on the couch beside her. “He’s flustered.”

“You talked to Levi,” Armin accused with a smile.

“I did. But I’ll tell you about it later; today is your day.”

*

As Armin sat cross legged on Jean’s couch, the taller male waved Eren, Mikasa and Annie off as they were the last to leave. Thank god he was smart enough not to break out the beer in the fridge or he knew that five teenagers would be wasted and his living room would be reduced to nothing more than a dumping ground for empty cans.

He sat beside Armin and the blond leaned against him nuzzling Jean comfortably as the taller teen draped his arm around the other. “So, did you plan all this on your own?”

Jean knew taking all the credit could come back to bite him in the ass later and he shook his head. “Eren threw the idea out there and we tossed around some other ideas. Connie helped a little too.”

“You guys are too good to me.” Armin smiled, curling his fingers against the fabric of Jean’s t-shirt and looking up to kiss him.  
He kissed back. “We try,” Jean smiled after pulling away and lying his head against Armin’s. “So, you had fun, right?”

“Of course.”

“Good. That’s all I want.”

Armin suddenly laughed. “So… I’m still small. I thought I’d be as tall as at least Eren by the time I hit seventeen. Well, tomorrow, but you know.”

“Hey, remember you could be like Krista. She’s only four nine, you know. And she’s turning eighteen in January. Or Annie. She’s gonna be nineteen in March. Or worse, you could be like Connie. Poor guy’s never gonna get any taller and he’s barely topping Annie.”

“Well I guess there’s always that,” Armin snickered.

The two laughed together, harder than they both knew they should have really, and then Armin abruptly stopped as something worked its way into his head. He had his “thinking face”.

After a moment of quiet, Armin shifted away from his boyfriend. “Hey… um… Jean? Actually… no, never mind, sorry.”

“What is it, Armin?”

“It’s nothing, ignore me.”

Jean shook his head. “No, tell me. What is it?”

Armin turned to look at Jean again. “Well… I don’t want to sound selfish or greedy or anything, especially since you’ve already done so much for me today… and I’m really appreciative but… well, there was one thing I wanted that I was too shy to ask for. I still am. I dunno… I feel wrong asking you for it.”

Jean smiled, curiously raising his eyebrows and embraced Armin from the side, pulling the smaller boy against him. “Ask anyway, birthday boy.”

Feeling his face heat up, Armin jerked out of Jeans grip and he looked away from his boyfriend again. Jean’s content expression turned to that of slightly concerned he sighed audibly. The shorter male ran his hand through his lengthy blond hair and looked toward the other slowly. “Well… it’s just… we’ve been together since February. And… god I feel like such a jerk asking for this but… well… Jean I—I want you to… I want you to touch me!” he finally managed.

Jean just stared at him for a moment before a smirk came over his lips, arrogance touching his golden eyes as he looked hungrily into Armin’s. Shifting closer to the blond on his couch, he teasingly ran a finger along the waist of his jeans as he leaned close to his ear. “You want me to touch you?”

Jean’s voice was deep, his breath hot against Armin’s skin, and it made the blond shudder. He chewed his bottom lip as he looked up into those golden eyes, lust overcoming his shyness. “Y-yes.” He pushed the hand at his waist lower, blue eyes foggy. “Touch me, Jean.”

Jean chuckled, the sound seeming to vibrate the space between them as he rubbed his palm against the bulge that was quickly trying to form a tent underneath the denim. Shifting down on the couch, he slid to the floor and moved between Armin’s legs. Pushing the blond’s shirt up and out of the way, he ran his tongue along the prominent hip bones, scraping his teeth along the sensitive V.

Armin let out a gasp at the odd bone against bone sensation, heat searing his skin as his hips bucked on their own. He couldn’t tear his gaze away, those golden eyes clouded with lust as they looked up at him. He was so captivated by those eyes that he almost didn’t realize Jean shifted lower, mouthing him through his pants. The sharp sensation brought him back to reality as he felt himself tilt his head back and close his eyes.

His blue eyes snapped open at the pop of his button and the whir of his zipper. “J-Jean! Ah~” Armin bit his lip as he watched Jean run his tongue over the cotton of his boxers, trying to control himself. “That’s, that’s not necessary.” He could feel his mind getting cloudy under Jean’s ministrations.

Jean pulled back just enough that he wasn’t touching anywhere but where his fingers rested on Armin’s hips. “Do you want it?”

A little whimper escaped Armin’s lips, his cheeks flushed. He ran long fingers through Jean’s soft hair, nodding slowly. “Jean, I... y-yeah.”

Jean would’ve laughed at the blond if he didn’t find him so damn sexy. Without wasting any time he tugged the front of Armin’s boxers down, freeing his erection. Dipping down, he held it gingerly, running his tongue up the length of the hardened shaft, relishing the gasp that pushed from those posy pink lips. Keeping his golden eyes on that flushed face, he rolled the flat of his tongue over the head, tongue prodding into the slit, bitter taste of precum assaulting his tastebuds.

Armin couldn’t tear his eyes away as he watched Jean’s tongue roll over his cock before it disappeared between his lips. Instinctively his fingers buried themselves in the brunet’s hair, clenching each time Jean would pull back and roll his tongue round the head of his cock.

“F-fuck… Jean~” His hips bucked, pushing his cock into Jean’s mouth. Blue eyes wide, his apology died on his lips as Jean’s hands held his hips and took him into his mouth until his nose pressed against blond hair. _Jean’s… fucking deep throat_ —He couldn’t even keep a train of thought as Jean swallowed around him, the contractions of his throat sending a jolt through Armin’s body.

The blond could feel himself losing it, a hand running back through his bangs as he couldn’t control his panting moans. “Jean, shit, I’m gonna,” He tried to tug on Jean’s hair to pull him back, but the brunet refused to budge, instead letting out a moan at the hair pulling that sent vibrations into Armin’s cock, pushing him over the edge. “Ah—Jean~!” 

Jean's name fell from those pink lips in waves, hot cum splurting into his throat as he swallowed around the swollen cock. He sucked him until he was almost trembling, pulling back he licked along the shaft and ran his tongue under the rim of his cock, cleaning the bitter fluids from the flesh.

Sitting back on his heels, he ran a thumb along his lower lip, cleaning any remnants from them as he smirked. “Happy birthday, Armin.”

* * *

As November’s days slowly went by, one by one, it got closer and closer to Christmas. Things are said and people laugh, things are done and people digress and return to more laughter. The group of teens have nothing special planned for the holiday except, as Sasha puts it “I’m gonna eat the hell out of my Thanksgiving,” to which Annie added, “and then the rest of ours,” which made everybody, including Sasha, laugh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Birthday blowjobs are pretty damn great.
> 
> Sidenote: Not sure if I made this clear, but Armin's party was thrown the day before his actual birthday, therefore he is still 16, but all of the the lovely characters in this story have their set birthdays. Except I changed some ages for reasons.
> 
> Also, Sorry for skipping through September, October, and November so quickly, but I'd quite like to get to the fluff and the EreRi reunion I so crave and wish to write soon. Which will, if all goes as planned, will be chapter 21 or 22.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just... I... I'm so happy.

With all of the excitement that happened during Thanksgiving and the three that followed, Eren was just glad that December had finally begun and was speeding quickly toward Christmas break.

Thanksgiving was eventful because Grisha and Eren had their first real conversation over dinner that night. Mikasa sat silently listening to the two discuss what had been said back at the end of August when Eren came out. It started with awkward glances followed by statements such as “these mashed potatoes are really good” and “hey can you pass the salt?” before the conversation actually happened.

“I’m sorry,” Grisha was the first to bring it up.

Mikasa glanced to her brother as he responded. “For what?” He had pushed the fight far from his mind ever since the night he spoke to Petra. Mikasa looked back to Grisha.

“Those things I said. When you told me that you…” His father trailed off. Mikasa’s eyes snapped back to her brother, curious as to what he would say.

He didn’t accept the apology right off the bat, as being stubborn as he was would always be when it came to anything ever. “I didn’t think you’d react the way you did. But that’s another reason I didn’t want to tell you.”

“I’m sorry.” Grisha repeated.

“It’s okay.”

Mikasa wondered how the conversation would go on so she just kept quiet and continued eating. Her eyes flickered back and forth from the two as they spoke.

“So…” Grisha seemed uncomfortable asking. “Are you going to tell me about your… boyfriend?” He said the word as though it were being ripped out of him.

Eren ignored the tone. “He’s great.” He began. “He’s the best.”

Mikasa held back a smirk and Grisha looked over the rim of his glasses at his son. “Am I going to get to meet him anytime soon?”

This question actually caught both of the teens off guard, though they hid it fairly well. “I dunno. He’s in France right now.”

“Oh?”

Mikasa bit her lip before hiding her nervous habit by lifting her glass to her lips for a drink. Eren nodded. “Yeah. But he’d coming back for Christmas, so if you still want to meet him…”

His father nodded. “Alright.”

And that was the end of that.

Then it was Friday. Eren and Mikasa had set their alarms for the time of “early-as-fuck” o’clock so that they could get ready for Black Friday shopping. The two of them had agreed with Armin, Jean, and Annie that they would all meet up at the mall and kill it for the sales. On the way there, Mikasa had turned to Eren and warned him not to cuss someone out if they got what he wanted first. In response, he told her not to throw anyone through a wall if the same thing happened to her. She only laughed.

The shopping was intense but the five teens had their ways of getting things before anyone else. They made a plan before heading toward the doors of the mall—a strategy—and it would be put to good use. 

Jean was tall and he was able to keep his items out of reach from some bitch who tried to swipe it from him. Armin was a little swindler and a trickster; he was able to convince people that the item they were getting was not at top quality or that it would break or tare easily, to which they would throw it back and run off to a different isle. Annie was quick and so was Mikasa, but if that didn’t help them, their intimidating looks to other shoppers gave them a huge advantage. And Eren… the kid had so much determination that when it came to getting that fucking game, or that fucking shirt or those fucking earrings, or the fucking anything, he snatched it before anyone else. 

The five of them escaped the mall with several items each, pockets and wallets and handbags empty of all money, smiling contently.

-

_Wednesday, December 4th_

“So, I have to ask, now that it’s official that you’re going back,” Hanji sang from her usual in Levi’s desk chair. “Mind if I tag along?”

The glare Levi sent her could make almost anyone shutter and back down. Hanji was not almost anyone. She smiled patiently, waiting for his response. “Why the fuck would you do that?”

“Well,” She began twirling a lock of her own hair around her finger. “Mike lives near him—” Levi’s eyes narrowed and Hanji quickly answered the unasked question. “I swear I’m not stalking Eren, but the last time you were on Skype with him, when I said hi, I saw the little tidbit where it says the where he lives and the time there. Anyway… Mike lives near him, and I want to see him. And who better to go on a trip across the ocean with than my good buddy Levi?”

Narrow eyes blinked and he actually began to think it over. “You’ll have to purchase your own plane ticket.”

Hanji’s eyes lit up. “Of course. So? It’s alright with you?”

“Not like I can stop you from going to see your boyfriend.” He shrugged and Hanji saw the faintest hint of a smile cross his lips. It went away as soon after. “But if you keep me up while I try to sleep I will throw you out of the plane.”

The brunette bounced with excitement. “Yay! Oh, I’m so excited, you don’t even know.” She paused and then let out a dreamy sigh before asking, “you’re not gonna let me meet Eren in person, are you.” It wasn’t a question.”

As much as Levi still “hated” Hanji for what she did back in August, it was clear that she was his friend now. A close friend, even, and for the most part, he enjoyed her company even though she never shut up. He thought over the question. Though Hanji was annoying and loud and had been a target for an elongated forty-eighth hours (give or take a few), she had also been part of the healing-Levi’s-relationship-with-Eren cause. And because of this, he couldn’t really deny her. Well, he could, he had every right, but it was going to be Christmas and he should be nice.

“Will you be returning here after the second week, or are you only staying in America when I bring Eren here?”

“I’ll probably stay for a full two weeks, and have the last week here.”

Levi nodded. “Before I bring him here I’ll introduce the two of you.”

Hanji looked so surprised as Levi’s sudden kindness. “Really?” He nodded. “Yay! Yaaaaaaay!”

“Don’t act so—what was the word you told me? Fan…girling? Yeah, don’t fangirl over it, calm the fuck down.”

“I can’t help it,” Hanji squealed. “I really can’t. I just ship you two so hard.”

“I still think that’s a weird word to use to express your joy over me and my boyfriend...”

-

_Friday, December 6th_

Eren smiled at his monitor as Levi’s face popped up on the Skype window. In the background, Hanji sat on Levi’s bed with her legs crossed, scanning through her French textbook with a few other large textbooks beside her.

“What’s up?” Was his greeting to the black haired man staring back.

Levi leaned back in his chair. As I’m sure it’s the same for you, I have final exams the next two weeks. So until the twentieth we probably won’t be talking much.” Eren nodded. He didn’t say anything though because he knew Levi had more. “Also, I’ll be leaving that Saturday and Erwin will be picking me up from the airport. Do you want me to come over right away?”

“How early do you think you’ll be here?”

The man shrugged. “Hopefully around lunch time if weather permits. Maybe a little later if snow happens.”

“Well in any case… I want you to come see me. I can take you home afterward. Also, my dad wants to meet you…” Levi nodded in response and left that as it was. Eren went on. “So, you guys are cramming in for finals?”

“This one is,” Levi gestured over his shoulder to Hanji. “Her study plan is read every book twice before the final it’s for. Out first one is our French final.”

Eren smirked. “Gotten any better at it yet? Last time you spoke French to me it was a fiasco.”

“If you recall, you had no idea what I said.”

“Because you barely knew what you were saying.” Eren teased.

Levi glared through his webcam at the younger male and then returned the smirk. “Oh? Eh bien dites-moi si vous pouvez comprendre cela, Eren, parce que dans les quatre derniers mois, je suis devenu immensément mieux parler la langue française, yous petit connard.”

Eren blinked. “Huh?”

Hanji laughed from behind Levi while looking through her textbook and shook her head. “That’s mean, Levi.”

He shrugged. “Oh well.”

“You know words, eh?” Eren shrugged off the statement that he had no idea was insulting him. “The accent could still use some work, though.”

Levi’s smirk vanished and he quirked an eyebrow. “Is that so? Well… Dans tous les cas, vous ne comprenez pas ce que je vous dis, en premier lieu, si je sens que ce sera amusant.” Hanji laughed again and Levi went on. “Quand je viens vous voir pendant la pause, je vais mettre ma bite dans ton cul et vas te faire encule jusqu'à ce que tu cries mon nom dans votre sommeil.”

Hanji’s head shot up from her book and she stared at the man, her cheeks burning a bright red color and her jaw hanging open. “Holy shit Levi, I didn’t expect to hear that.”

“What?” Eren cocked his head. “What did he say? Levi what’d you say?”

“What I said wasn’t important because I suck at French,” He snorted. “Alright, I have to get to studying a bit, it’s nearly nine and Hanji has to go soon. Ta-ta for now, Eren.”

“Wait, what—what’d you say?! Tell me!”

“You’ll find out, brat.” Hanji blushed harder and Levi leaned toward his webcam a bit to put Hanji out of view. “Buh-bye.”  
Eren sighed then smiled. “Uh-huh, okay. Love you.”

“Love you too.”

The call ended.

Eren smiled at the “I love you” he received and then pulled his backpack into his lap. It was time he started studying too, for his exams were in two weeks and if he wanted a good score, Armin suggested he study as much as he can without being deprived of sleep.

A few minutes passed as he looked through his math textbook and some notes he had taken in class before he heard his phone buzz. He reached over to pick it up but saw it was an unknown number that had texted him. At first he considered discarding the message but his curiosity got the best of him and he opened the text.

“I suggest you start learning French” was what it said. He blinked and turned to look at his monitor. Levi was still logged into Skype as “away”, and as Eren set his online status to “away” as well, he felt he knew exactly who had sent him the message.

-

The weekend had gone by quickly despite all of the studying Eren had done, but at some point or another he, Armin, Jean, Mikasa, Annie, and _Springles_ (as they had deemed Sasha and Connie now that they were a couple) had decided to become a study group. They studied regularly for a few hours before Connie complained about how boring it was and the seven of them ended up playing a “who remembers this” game per each subject. It was fun—as fun as studying can be, at least.

The week after had been filled with review-lessons for each class, and by Friday, Eren was burned out. He knew the shit, he kept telling himself, and as much as he wanted to call Levi and complain about all of the reviews and studying he had been doing, he knew that Levi had the same thing going on but for even harder subjects. Complaining to Levi was never a good idea anyway.

And finally came the week of finals. Each exam took place on its own day which made things easier for the entire school, and at the end of each test when the sheets were taken up, groans of “I am so done taking tests” and “kill me now, this is torture” were followed by “oh my god it’s time for lunch”. Normally, the last line before everyone rushed out of the class was from Sasha.

-

_Friday, December 20th ___

__He had passed out at his desk waiting for the brat to get home from school. It was only eight his time, but Levi was so warn out from his strict schedule that sleep coming to him so easily was a fucking blessing. He was awoken by the annoying-as-hell call pending noise that Skype provided._ _

__Sitting up, Levi accepted the call and his webcam turned on. He rubbed his eyes and let out a yawn as Eren greeted him._ _

__“Oi, hey.”_ _

__“Were you… napping?” Eren snickered._ _

__“Bye.” Levi glared at him._ _

__“Sorry! Sorry, it’s just… I didn’t know you liked naps.”_ _

__“It seems we always arrive at that statement, Eren.” Levi leaned back in his chair. “I’ve been waiting for you to get online since you sent me that texts two god damned hours ago.”_ _

__“Well I just got home. We got out early and went out to lunch before I got back. Granted it was a three hour lunch, but this is the normal time I’d get home anyway…”_ _

__Levi nodded. “Mhm. So how do you think you did?”_ _

__“Pretty damn good, actually. Maybe not as well as I wanted to on the math one but other than that… what about you?”_ _

__“I don’t think I have to worry about failing,” Levi replied. He watched as his boyfriend shifted in his seat and the boy’s cheeks turned a light shade of red when he looked back up to meet Levi’s eyes. “So… are you excited for tomorrow?”_ _

__“No.” Levi almost laughed when the hope in Eren’s eyes vanished. “I’m kidding, god, relax. Of course I am. I’d be nice be home a while, see Petra and Erwin again… oh, and of course that little shit Eren.”  
Eren smiled. “I can’t wait for you to get here. I really can’t—I’m going to hug the shit out of you.”_ _

__“That’s gross, don’t. Hug me normally.”_ _

__Hearing Eren laugh was one of the greatest things to Levi; that unnaturally emotional voice, not only when he laughed but talked, too, filled him with warmth that made Levi smile every time. It was one of the many things Eren could do that made Levi smile, and only something that could make him smile._ _

__“Okay, but you’ll hug me back won’t you?”_ _

__“You’re full of stupid questions today. I guess those exams fried your brain, huh? Yes, I’ll hug you back. And I’ll probably kiss you if you’re lucky.”_ _

__“I hope I’m lucky.” Eren grinned._ _

__“I hope you are, too.” Levi yawned. “Alright, my body is allowing me to actually get some sleep tonight so I’m going to bed. I’ll see you tomorrow—” he couldn’t help but smile again from being able to say that. “—alright?”_ _

__The brunette nodded. “Alright. Say… We’re spending our first Christmas together as a couple.”_ _

__“We are indeed,” Levi stretched his arms above his head before letting them fall and putting his right hand over the touchpad. “How romantic of you to say so. Goodnight, Eren.”_ _

__“Goodnight, Levi.”_ _

__“I love you,” Levi said it first, holding the smile as he did._ _

__Eren exhaled and stared into the steely blue eyes of his boyfriend. “I love you too. See you tomorrow.”_ _

__Levi ended the call. A he had packed all of his things the night before; he shut his laptop off and slid it into its case and made his way over to his bed. Hanji would be over at 5:30 in the morning for the two of them to head to the airport together. He pulled the blanket up over his head and let out a small yawn. It was about 8:40 now as Levi finally fell asleep._ _

__-_ _

___Saturday, December 21st_ _ _

__The night had rushed over quickly and when Levi was woken up by the sound of Hanji pounding on the door to his room, he had felt like he hadn’t slept at all. He sat up and rubbed his eyes and silently stared into the darkness of his bedroom for a moment before forcing himself out of bed and walking to the door._ _

__“You’re still in your pajamas!” Hanji shouted, her hands flying forward and gesturing at his clothing. “I told you I’d be here a five A.M!”_ _

__“Is it seriously gonna take us two fucking hours to get the airport? I doubt it.” Levi sighed. “Give me ten minutes, I’ll be ready.”_ _

__He shut the door with Hanji waiting patiently outside of his room for him. Even though he thought he’d be up before she came to get him, he had laid an outfit out ahead of time. He turned the light on and as he changed out of his pajamas and pulled on a pair of jeans and a black long sleeved shirt followed by his favorite jacket, he began moving quicker when a thought popped into his head. Oh my god, I’m going to get to see Eren today, as though he hadn’t understood it sooner. After four fucking months I’m going to see him._ _

__Levi grabbed his bag and cut the light off before opening the door. Hanji was still waiting patiently for him and once he shut the door behind him she hooked her arm around his and began to drag him down the hall._ _

__“This is gonna be a great trip, oh, oh man, Levi, I can’t wait to be hoooooome!” Hanji hummed._ _

__He rolled his eyes but couldn’t hold back the small smile her enthusiasm brought on. “Quiet down will you? Some people are still in their dorms trying to sleep.”_ _

__Hanji giggled. “Sorry, sorry… I’m just excited! You are too, aren’t you? It’s the big day after all.”_ _

__“Of course I’m excited.” He replied looking up at the brunette as she pushed open the door to exit the dormitory building. “You have your ticket, right?”_ _

__She nodded. “And you?” He nodded and she continued to pull him along toward the gate that separated the campus from the outside streets. “Alright, I got us a cab. You’re paying—” she snuck a glance at his face and laughed nervously at the scowl she received. “I’m joking, Levi.”_ _

__-_ _

__“Do people even shower…”_ _

__“Shh.”_ _

__“Did this fuckin’ lady just shush me, Hanji?”_ _

__“Shh!”_ _

__“Han—”_ _

__“Levi, I’m the one shushing you, now shh!”_ _

__-_ _

__“Levi, you should wake up.”_ _

__“I told you if you woke me I would throw you off the plane…”_ _

__“But the ocean looks so pretty from up here!”_ _

__“And I’m sure when you make impact with it you’ll think the same thing.”_ _

__“…Damn, sorry.”_ _

__-_ _

__“Hanji wake up.”_ _

__“Noooo…”_ _

__“Woman… we are landing. Wake the fuck up.”_ _

__“But I’m sleepy.”_ _

__“Wake the fuck up. You can sleep when you go to your boyfriends house or whatev—ew, no don’t fucking lean on me, you’re drooling! Hanji!”_ _

__“Shhhh!”_ _

__“Lady if you shush me one more fucking time…”_ _

__“Levi I’m up.”_ _

__“Wipe your face. You’re drooling and it’s fucking gross—”_ _

__“Shhh.”_ _

__“What are you even shushing me for?!”_ _

__“Levi. Shush-it.”_ _

__“Fuck off.”_ _

__-_ _

__“So what does Erwin look like?” Hanji played with the zipper of her luggage as she asked._ _

__Levi leaned back against the bench and folded his left leg over his right. “Doesn’t matter. I’ll know him when I see him. He’s going to be taking me to Eren’s house before anything else, but if you ask him I’m sure he’ll take you wherever it is you need to go.”_ _

__“Okay,” She hummed. A smile spread across her face and she wrapped one arm around Levi’s shoulder. “So, you could say we’re friends right?”_ _

__“Er… I suppose. Why?”_ _

__“I got you an early Christmas present.” When you went to go get your coffee—” she reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a small item wrapped in plastic and taped at the top to a piece of colorful cardboard. Levi took it from her and examined it._ _

__“What is this?”_ _

__“It’s a cellphone charm. Read it.”_ _

__Levi looked down at the small grey-blue charm at the end of the short string taped to the cardboard. “‘Hella fab’… what the fuck?”_ _

__Hanji laughed. “I thought it was funny! I know it’s a cheap little thing but I thought you’d like it.”_ _

__Before Levi could thank her, a deep voice caught his ear “Levi!” and he looked up to see the blond man coming toward the two of them._ _

__“Hanji, Erwin; Erwin, Hanji.” Levi quickly introduced the two. “Okay, now, it’s great to see you Erwin—” he was interrupted by Erwin pulling him into a hug and Levi’s face was smothered against the blond man’s chest. Hanji half expected Levi to shove Erwin off of him but she smiled when she was him hug the taller man back, if only for a second. “You big thing,” Levi huffed after Erwin released him. “Alright, I’m ready to go. Let’s go.”_ _

__“He’s so anxious,” Hanji snorted and picked her bags up, only to have it taken from her by Levi. “What?”_ _

__“Let me,” Levi said, her luggage in one hand and his now in the other. “Now come on. Let’s go.”_ _

__-_ _

__“Eren, no,” Mikasa massaged her temples. “This is why I wanted to decorate the damn tree earlier. You’re so jittery about Levi coming that you can’t even do the damn lights correctly. Stop, just—oh my god stop.”_ _

__Eren sighed and threw the string of lights on the floor and stood beside the tree. “I think we should put the lights on the windows. Why do we have to put them on the tree? The tree is already so full of shit.”_ _

__“Because this is how we’ve always decorated it now stop complaining and—” she paused and leaned to the left. “Eh…?”_ _

__Eren quirked an eyebrow. “What’re you lookin’ at?”_ _

__“Someone’s here. I don’t recognize the car.” Mikasa replied then looked back toward the tree and began to sing. “Better watch out, better fuckin’ hide, your midget boyfriend has got a new ride,”_ _

__Looking over his shoulder and out the window, Eren’s heartbeat suddenly sped and he nearly tripped over the cord of lights and knocked the tree over to get to the hallway. He was at the door just as knuckles tapped against it._ _

__Eren waited, trying not to seem too eager by opening it right off the bat, until he heard Levi from the other side. “Oi, Eren, open the god damn door. I saw you from the window, I know you’re standing there.” And without giving it another seconds thought, He jerked the door open and pulled Levi in for a tight hug._ _

__“Oh my god, I can’t believe you’re here, I missed you so fucking mu—” He was cut off by Levi shoving him off and jerking his head down to have Levi’s lips pressed to his.  
It was a small kiss, but Eren missed kisses like this all the same. “I missed you too. Now I’m coming inside because it’s cold as fuck out here.”_ _

__Eren stepped to the side and Levi walked in past him, only taking a brief moment to half-turn and wave toward Erwin and Hanji before stepping inside of the house with his luggage. Eren shut the door behind him as the car drove off._ _

__As he turned back to face Levi, the man had his jacket halfway off and was arching his back to stretch a bit. Eren could only smile as the older male pushed his things against the wall and out of the hallway, laying his jacket on the top, neatly folded. Levi turned back to Eren and the two stood in silence for a minute._ _

__“Well?” Levi folded his arms. “Aren’t you lucky? Maybe I want to be lucky too.”_ _

__Eren’s heart fluttered and he took Levi’s face in his hands. “I love you,” He leaned down and kissed Levi. He pulled away and then kissed him again, and did the same thing a few times until he felt Levi’s hands around his neck and holding the back of his head._ _

__A tongue traced along the teens bottom lip and he let it enter without hesitation and he let (yeah, let) Levi explore the boys mouth with his tongue before they switched off, only for a second, for Eren to do the same. Just as Eren tilted his head to the right to deepen kiss, Levi pulled away and gave Eren the smile he missed seeing in person. “I love you too.”_ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _  
>  **REUNION OF THE OTP.**   
>  _


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you say character development? uwu Levi is kinda ooc near the end of this chapter but it's because of special reasons.
> 
> Umm... I kinda wanted to write a long note. I guess what I wanted to say is: Holy crap, I've made it to a whole twenty-two chapters and nobody had told me how much this sucks, so there's an accomplishment I wish I could tell people about and celebrate about it. Though, I'd assume some would question why I am writing something like this. Mothers >.>
> 
> Okay, let's see, what else... Oh yeah. Thank you all so much for the comments and kudos and all that, it really makes me smile. Like, the fact that somehow this fic has gotten 200+ kudos and 8000+ hits is seriously amazing to me. And it's all thanks to you guys because you're amazing and have stuck with me long enough to see this piece of crap writing turn into something nice.
> 
> This fic is a baby, really, and I know it started out slow, as I really had no plot to it until... well, kind of recently. And now, it's something I look forward to writing and posting. And as babys go, they gotta grow. So thanks for sticking with me through this whole horrible process of fights and arguments and my attempts at humor and the cuteness from some chapters.
> 
> Alright, I guess i should stop writing this note because this chapter is amazing, I think, and I hope you enjoy it. It's leading up to something big (aside from sexytimes) that will define Eren and Levi's relationship is something far more serious than... well, I needn't go on. Enjoy.
> 
> P.S. this chapter has some AnniKasa in it, and it's actually important despite the read looking like bickering girlfriends. Alright, I'm done.

After kissing a bit more, the two boys strolled into the living room. Levi greeted Mikasa and she waved at him in response. Then Eren tried to go back to helping her decorate the tree but she hissed at him and told him to sit on the couch with Levi and she would finish it. So he did.

Levi’s arm was around the younger males shoulder and Eren had his head on the black haired man’s shoulder. Mikasa finished draping the lights how she wanted them and plugged the cord into the wall and smiled as the tree began to glow a bright white that made the tinsel and other ornaments shine.

“Not bad,” Levi remarked, looking at the tree. “Though it’s missing something.”

“I haven’t put the star on top yet,” Mikasa sat on the other side of the couch, leaving a cushion between herself and the two boys. “It’s a tradition to wait for dad to be home when we do.”

“Speaking of dad,” Eren shifted and curled his fingers around the fabric of Levi’s shirt just above his chest. “Do you want to meet him today?”

Levi shrugged. “It doesn’t really matter to me. I’m not going to get thrown out of your house, am I?”

“Why would you…?” Mikasa looked over to him with a brow quirked up.

“Long story.” Levi looked back at her then adjusted and his grip on Eren’s shoulder tightened just slightly.

Eren shook his head. “You shouldn’t be, I mean, my dad is kind of accepting of the whole thing now. He wants to meet you anyway.”

With a nod, Levi pressed his lips to Eren’s temple, and in return Eren nuzzled his face into the crook of Levi’s neck and oh so casually inhaled to take in his boyfriends scent. Mikasa watched the two and then laughed. “Cute.” It was sarcastic.

Levi shot her a look. “Oh? Cute, yes, he is. Very cute.” Eren laughed against the collar of Levi’s shirt and pulled back to look at his sister. “So, what do you have planned with your girlfriend for the holidays?”

“Eren told you,” the girl rolled her eyes. “Nothing, actually. Probably just going to exchange presents and whatever else.”

Lifting his hands, Levi made bunny ears and created air quotes along with the words he spoke. “And whatever else.” He dropped his hands back to his lap and Eren’s shoulder. “Sounds like you’ll be eating out then.”

“Levi,” Eren stared at him. “Ew.”

“I meant as in a date. In a restaurant. You little pervert,” Levi snorted and ignored the glare Mikasa was aiming at him. “God, and that’s your sister, Eren. Have some restraint, would you?”

The teen shrunk back and released his grip on Levi’s shirt. “You… you’re not funny.”

“I’m fucking hilarious.” Levi snorted.

-

“Okay, dad is taking forever so—” Eren pushed his arms through the sleeves of his jacket and swiped the car keys off of the coffee table. “—I’m gonna go and take Levi to his place.” 

Mikasa nodded as Levi returned from the kitchen with a cup of coffee. “You’re taking my favorite mug?”  
He held it by the handle then placed his right hand over the top of it and sipped whilst bending over to get the handle of his luggage. “It’s the only clean one in there. I’ll return it, clam down.” 

Eren opened the door for him and Levi stepped outside. Calling back to his sister, “Be back in a little while,” before walking out and shutting the door behind him.

Levi set the mug on the roof of the car and opened the back door to put his bag in the backseat. Then he took the mug back and got in the passenger seat just as Eren pulled his seatbelt on. Levi did the same and took another sip of his coffee.

“You remember how to get to my building, right?” The black haired man looked to the teen. Eren nodded as he backed out of his driveway and started down the road. Levi squinted toward the radio dials and then turned to Eren. “Music?”

“All the stations are playing Christmas music. Have been all month,” He snickered. “Yesterday me and Mikasa went out to get dinner because dad said he was going to be home late and we didn’t feel like cooking. The Chipmunks were on with their What I Want for Christmas song and Mikasa was trying to match pitch—it was hilarious.”

Levi rolled his eyes but couldn’t help but smile at Eren’s amusement. “You’re adorable.”

Eren blushed ever so lightly and smiled. “Nah… oh, but if you want to listen to something we have a few CDs in the glove compartment. Um… I think Panic! At The Disco is the one Mikasa has in there right now.”

Opening the glove compartment, Levi pulled out the small wallet-like CD holder and began looking through it. “All these CDs and nothing good.”

“What?” Eren glanced toward his boyfriend then sighed, still smiling. “Oh right, I forgot you’re old and don’t appreciate the music of my generation.” He joked.

“It’s not much to appreciate—wait who the fuck are you calling old? Asshole. I’m only twenty-four.”

“You’re seven years older than me,” Eren shot back with a hum. He reached for the dials and took the CD holder from Levi as they stopped at a red-light. He looked through it and selected a CD, switching it out with the P!ATD one before the light changed to green. “This one has a lot of different songs on it,” He began to drive again. “Armin burned it for me; the songs are pretty good,”

The two of them listened as the songs went by. One song, Eren wasn’t really listening to it (because he was kind of lost on the way to Levi’s apartment but he didn’t dare tell Levi that, instead he hoped Levi would distract himself while the brunette tried to remember the way), had Levi smiling. It wasn’t a big smile, but nonetheless, it was a smile. And when Eren glanced over at his boyfriend after coming to a stop at a red-light, he hadn’t expected a smile. Looking back, the light had changed to green and they began moving again.

“Hey,” Levi looked out the window again—they were about seven blocks from his apartment building now. “You’re gonna stay a while, right?”

“Of course,” Eren sang out, eyebrows up as though surprised by Levi’s question. “Why wouldn’t I?”

“Just checking.”

They arrived, Eren parked and turned the key, ignition off, and the two got out. Eren offered to carry Levi’s bag but the shorter male declined and pulled the bag out himself and was already halfway to the door before Eren got around the car.

The temptation to hold Levi’s hand was great, but they’d be inside and in his apartment in less than no time at all and he could kiss him all he wanted.

The two walked inside and Levi nodded toward the receptionist as his greeting. She was a short, silver-white haired young woman with glasses. She gave him the same nod and the two males went on toward the elevator. Once inside, Levi put his luggage down and selected his floor. The doors shut and the shorter male turned to Eren.

“Kiss me.”

He didn’t have to ask twice. Eren threw his arms around Levi’s neck and leaned down to press his lips to Levi’s. Levi placed one hand on Eren’s hip and the other reaching up to cup the teen’s cheek before gliding down and was against the side of his neck now. He didn’t have to apply much force before Eren’s back was against the wall of the elevator, legs spread and bent so Levi wouldn’t have to tiptoe to keep his lips to the other’s. 

It’d been a while since they had kissed like this, and Eren wanted to go on forever. There was no tongue, but mouths were open, then closed, then open again, as though breathing in the taste of their lover’s mouth (they weren’t really, though).

Levi was the first to pull away as the elevator came to a stop, smirking up at this boyfriend before turning to grab his bag and exit the elevator with Eren following behind like a lost puppy. Levi’s apartment was next to last down the hall, across from Petra’s and between an elderly man and a pair of twins.

The door adjacent to Levi’s opened before the two males were halfway down the hall and out came sweet little Petra and Auruo. Petra was locking the door back when she turned and gasped, dropping the key and running into Levi to hug him whether he wanted her to or not.

“Hey!” She smiled widely at him. “I didn’t know you were coming back!”

“Finals are done,” He replied giving her a small half-smile. 

She released him and continued smiling, now looking up at Eren. Auruo came up behind her and put his arm around her shoulder, looking to Levi cautiously at first before smiling all smug-like. “Hey, Levi.”

“Hello,”

“Where’re you guys going?” Eren asked like an excited child, smiling back to Petra.

“He’s taking me out for lunch before his shift,” The ginger leaned against the taller male.

Levi gave a small nod as though he approved; it may not seem like it, but ever since Elementary school, Levi had been protective of the girl. “Ral’s?”

“God no, I can’t eat there,” Petra cringed. “Family restaurant or not, I refuse to. Actually, he says it’s a surprise so I have no idea where we’re going. But not Ral’s,” She looked up at Auruo. “Not Ral’s?”

“Not Ral’s.”

Eren laughed, not being entirely sure of the reason why but did anyway. The three just stared at him until he got quiet again. It took a minute, knowing Eren.

“Have fun,” Levi told them before grabbing Eren’s hand and walking around the couple.

“Nice seeing you!” Petra called, looking over her shoulder. “Glad you’re back!”

-

“So what do you want to do?”

Annie shrugged while playing with her girlfriends’ fingers. “Doesn’t matter. Oh, hey, I’m going to dinner with my dad tomorrow, you should come. Not like a date or anything, even though it will be despite him there.”

“You’ve told him already, haven’t you?” Mikasa sighed.

“I did no such thing.” Annie huffed. The room grew silent and she looked toward the living room TV was so much focus it looked like she almost cared what was on. “He asked.”

“He asked?”

The blond nodded. “He said, ‘so, you and Mikasa are pretty close lately. Like you’re dating or something’. I told him we were and that was that.”

“He didn’t really ask.” Mikasa mumbled. “It was sarcasm, Annie.”

“I know that,” She replied flatly, looking up to her dark haired girlfriend with cold eyes. “But he clearly knew something was going on. The way he said ‘pretty close’ was like… I can’t explain it. The way he said it. I knew he knew.”

“Uh-huh.”

Annie released Mikasa’s hand and folded her arms over her chest, now annoyed. “Just because you’re not ready to come out doesn’t mean I’m not.”

Mikasa scoffed, almost gasping, and let out a humorless laugh. “My dad is barely accepting of one gay kid. You think he’d appreciate both of his kids being gay? Huh?”

“It’s not about your dad. And you know it’s tougher for boys than it is for girls. Your dad’s probably like ‘oh how have I failed as a father to make Eren turn to dicks’ or whatever.”

“You’re so weird.”

Shrugging, Annie cuddled into Mikasa’s side and began tracing her fingers over the dark haired girl’s jeans. “You should tell him. It should be easier for him to handle now that Eren’s gone first. You know, even though you told for him.”

“It’d be easier if Eren told him for me,” Mikasa snorted, the sarcasm evident.

“If Eren told him for you? What if I told him for you?” Annie smirked. She continued the tease. “What better way to find out your adopted daughter is a lesbian than by her girlfriend?”

“Can you stop,” Mikasa growled. 

Annie laughed. “You can’t keep it a secret forever. I mean, your dad is a doctor. He’s smart. If Eren of all people could figure it out then who’s to say your dad can’t? Who’s to say he already hasn’t?”

“Annie I will make you leave.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll stop.” It was a sigh and Annie shook her head. “Sorry.”

-

The two of them stand in Levi’s kitchen as the shorter male took a small freezer pizza out of his oven. As he had been gone for four months, he had asked Petra to apartment-sit for him and she complied, keeping the place as dust free as she could whilst still juggling a boyfriend and a job at her family restaurant. Because he and Petra were so close, in the time the two of them discovered they were neighbors, Petra gave him her spare key in case he ever needed anything and she wasn’t home, and he did the same for her for the same reason. And so, he took her freezer pizza.

Levi knew Eren wanted to kiss some more, but he was hungry and Eren would have to wait until after he (or they both, as Eren was now hungry after seeing the pizza) ate, put the pizza away, cleaned off the table, and the two of them brush their teeth because “pizza breath is disgusting.”

It was good. The slices were small, but there was still plenty. They both ate two, with the exception of Eren eating two more and half of another before the black haired male spoke.

“Jesus Christ, Eren,” Levi watched the boy devour the crust. “You act like you haven’t eaten in days.”

“I’m a seventeen year old boy, my entire existence is based around eating,” Replied the brunette after swallowing the last bit of his food. He had learned that talking to Levi with your mouth full of chewed anything is like asking for a punch in the nose.

“Yeah okay. Go brush your teeth while I clean this up.”

“I didn’t bring my—”

Levi shot him a look. “Don’t be stupid. I have spares, still in the wrapping. Behind the mirror. Go brush your fucking teeth.”

“Hostile,” Eren mumbled before getting up and heading to Levi’s bathroom to do so.

Holding the plate that held the last piece of the freezer pizza (and ten thousand crumbs), Levi tossed it into a small Ziploc baggy and placed it in the fridge. He put the plate in the sink to wash the crumbs and sauce off of it, using an excessive amount of dish soap and then drying it to the point that his reflection shown. He put it back in the cabinet and went into the living room to get his toothbrush and other dentally hygienic items from his bag. Then he went into the bathroom.

Eren was aggressively brushing his teeth over the sink and looked to Levi from the mirror as he spit. “Why do you have three things of toothpaste in here?”

“Because,” Levi slid over to the sink and turned the water on to wet his toothbrush. “Some people like to dot their bristles with the paste and then crush the top of the tube against it so they can smear it so it doesn’t look like there’s a lot on there. Erwin says it makes him gag. Not that people do that, but the toothpaste. It makes me gag that people put their disgusting ass toothbrushes against where my toothpaste comes out.”

“You are such a freak,” Eren snickered as foam from his toothpaste ran down his chin.

“And you’re disgusting. Finish up and wipe your mouth.

The two stared at each other in the mirror as they brushed their teeth. Eren was finished first and Levi told him to swish before he left the bathroom. Eren gargled. Levi glared at him. Eren spat into the sink. Levi finished brushing his teeth and swished. The two dried their mouths off. Then Levi had Eren against the bathroom door with their clean lips pressed together, minty breath being exchanged and fresh tongues fighting for dominance in Eren’s mouth. Levi’s won.

Eren complained about the doorknob hitting his funny bone between kisses so the two of them rushed to the couch, Levi nearly throwing Eren down on it. They were not going to have sex; this was just a well-deserved make out session that the two of them had been deprived of for four months.

Levi was on top of him, straddling, Eren bucking his hips up against Levi’s thighs as they kissed each other hungrily. Levi would have told him to calm down but he really didn’t want him to. If it were up to him, which it was but wasn’t, they would do it. Right there. He wanted Eren; the little shit being the only thing on his mind since he went to France and then back. But no. He wanted their first time to be something special. Something memorable. But he wasn’t going to wait to fuck him in France because, and he had contemplated the thought, it would take too long to come. And perhaps fuck wasn’t the right word for a first time with a teenager he was undeniably head-over-heels for.

The song he had heard in the car on the way to his apartment was how he had felt about Eren. It was the first time he had heard it, and even with that fact in hand, it was the perfect song for his feelings. Most people assumed Levi didn’t have feelings because those people never got to know him. Erwin had gotten through that rough exterior that was Levi, Petra had gotten through, Eren had defiantly gotten through, and hell, even Hanji got through.

Levi did love Eren, as Eren loved him, even though it did take him longer to realize it. It was unconditional. _Fuck_. He loved him a lot. _Fuck_. He loved him more than anything. _Fuck..._

Levi was brought out of his thoughts by Eren beginning to suck and kiss on his neck. When had they stopped kissing? It hadn’t been long, as his lips still tingled from the feeling of Eren’s soft, warm ones on his before.

“Eren,” The black haired man spoke. Thankfully, his voice didn’t match the way he felt. It didn’t shake, it didn’t quiver, and it didn’t crack. The brunette pulled away and looked up at his boyfriend. “I love you. I fucking love you. I really, really fucking love you.”

A smile. A perfect smile that made Levi love him more. A smile that made his heart ache that he couldn’t be with Eren every second of every day, and he wouldn’t even get to see him for five months after the holiday break was over. “I love you too.”

Levi shook his head. He felt like he wanted to cry. What the fuck? What even are all these emotions at once? Why is this happening? He loved him. He loved him so much. Is it possible to love someone too much? “No, I mean, I fucking love you. I love you. I just—I can’t even use the right words.”

“I… I love you too,” Eren repeated. He didn’t hesitate because he was unsure; he hesitated because he felt Levi was unsure. “I love you, Levi.”

“I feel like I’m going to fucking cry.” Levi whimpered. Yes. He fucking whimpered. He lowered his head and kissed Eren tenderly, gently, their lips just ghosting over each other’s at first, then turning into something powerful. They had felt the cliché spark, and it didn’t feel like a _spark_ at all. It felt like an explosion. Their skin tingled, and burned. Levi pulled away. “Eren, I—” Was he shaking? Levi, Mr. cool and stoic and shit jokes, was shaking. “I don’t know what is going on right now.”

“Are you alright?”

What a stupid question. No he was not alright. Yet, at the same time, he was. He was alright because Eren was there. But he was not alright because Eren was there, but not close enough, despite Levi being directly on top of him. Their eyes locked. “Yes.”

“You’re shaking.” Eren pointed out. He was too, but refused to acknowledge it.

Levi nodded, smiling. _Smiling_. “Yeah. I know. You are too. Kiss me again.” Eren didn’t have to move much to do so. Their lips moved together, matching the movements as though made for the movements. As though _made for each other’s_. Levi pulled away again and just laid on Eren. The two were silent; Eren slowly draped his arms around Levi and the two lay on the clean couch in Levi’s silent apartment, listening to the sound of their breathing and beating hearts.

“I don’t ever want to move.” Eren whispered.

Levi let out a steady breath and slid his shaking hand up to Eren’s neck. His cool fingers grazed the skin as he moved his hand further, up the chin and to Eren’s lips. His index and middle fingers gently pressed against the teens lips before his hand fell beside Eren’s head, fingers curled into the palm, making a fist. “I don’t ever want to leave.” He whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sexy times are coming soon, i swear, I promise.


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some more AuruPet because why not. Mikasa does a thing. Levi meets someone. Eren is going to meet people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, yeah, I know, Levi's last name isn't Rivaille and he doesn't _have_ a last name, but for the sake of this god damn story his last name is Rivaille.

The price that comes to laying on a comfy couch with your boyfriend cuddling with you from above in the warmth of his apartment is that you fall asleep for a good three and a half hours. They were both awoken by the vibration of Eren’s phone still in his jeans pocket. Eren blinked a few times and watched as Levi’s head rose first; the shorter man letting out a yawn before turning to look at Eren and stretch forward to kiss him.

“We fell asleep,” Eren whispered after the small kiss broke.

“We did.” Levi says up on Eren’s stomach and smirked down at the boy beneath him before getting off of the couch and stretching.

It was Eren’s turn to sit up and as he did he pulled his phone from his pocket. “Oh fuck me…”

“Gladly,” Levi joked, dropping his hands to his sides. Eren’s expression was serious. “What?”

“Mikasa texted me. She told me… she came out to dad. Annie was there.” Levi blinked. “She said dad didn’t react… as she expected.” Levi blinked again. “And she said he wants to meet you.”

Levi placed his hands on his hips and shifted his weight to his left leg. “Oh? Well get up then. I do think it’s about time I meet Mr. Jaeger.” He walked over toward the coatrack on his door.

“Uh…” Eren squinted but got to his feet. He had been wearing his shoes since they had gotten there. His shoes were on Levi’s couch. Thankfully, clean shoes meant no dirt. He could live another day. “Do you really think—”

“Don’t delay it, Eren. The sooner it happens, the more relaxing the rest of our holiday together will be.” Levi pulled his coat back on and tossed Eren’s over to him. The teen barely had his left arm in the sleeve before Levi, who had strode back to him while he was in thought, pulled him forward by the collar of his t-shirt and then down into a kiss. Another small one that could have lasted far longer if not for Eren’s phone buzzing again and Levi ordering the boy to finish putting his coat on so they could go. Eren swiped his keys off of the table and followed Levi to the door.

Then to the elevator.

Then through the parking lot.

Then into Eren and Mikasa’s car where Mikasa’s favorite mug had four hour old coffee inside of it when Levi forgot to take it out earlier.

“Gross.” He cringed, holding the mug by its handle and turning it over to pour its contents out and on the pavement and rolling the window up afterward. He placed the mug back in the holder and Eren began to drive. The teen fidgeted; tapping his fingers against the curve of the wheel, glancing from the road to Levi then back to the road in less than a second.

Levi turned to him, turning the dial so the music was now but a whisper. “Hey. What are you so friggin’ worried about?” Eren didn’t answer. “Think your dad is gonna scream at you again?”

Eren shrunk back against the driver seat and came to a stop at the red-light. His deep green eyes, even at the angle Levi was seeing them, were filled with worry. He hesitated. “I don’t want to fight with him again. We technically only made up on Thanksgiving.”

Turning back to look out at the road, the light turned green and Eren began driving again. Levi spoke. “What was it Mikasa said? His reaction?”

“She said he didn’t react the way he expected.” Eren’s tone didn’t match the anxious look in his eyes.

“That doesn’t necessarily mean he reacted badly, now does it. Maybe she expected the worst, after all it’s what he gave you, was it not?”

The teen nodded slowly. “That’s true… though, the ‘worst’ isn’t exactly how I’d put it seeing as you were kicked out of your house, Levi…” _Then again, this time I’m going in with my boyfriend._

“Uh-huh. Exactly. It’ll be fine. I’ll even hold your hand if you want.”

“Shut up…” Eren couldn’t hold back the smile. 

As he pulled up in the driveway the two of them could see the brightly lit tree from the window. They got out, this time Levi had the mug in hand, and walked to the front door together. The teen began to fidget again so Levi placed a hand on the taller male’s shoulder to comfort him.

“It’ll be _fine_.” He said again.

Eren only nodded before opening the door and having warm air hit them. Neither of them even realized how cold it was outside until they had the two temperatures fighting, warmth against their chests and faces and frigid air nipping at their backsides. After stepping inside and shutting the door, Eren took hold of Levi’s hand (with a grip so tight Levi thought for sure his hand would bruise) and lead him into the living room where Mikasa sat with Annie.

“How’d it go?” The brunette spoke just above a whisper.

Annie had the expression of a child who had just been scolded, her arms crossed and her lower lip puckered out in a pout. Mikasa on the other hand kept her calm-as-always expression indicating it hadn’t gone too horribly (or at all horrible).

“Okay.” The black haired girl replied quietly. “He’s in the kitchen.”

Levi and Annie exchanged glances as though silently discussing the ordeal mentally. Within a minute of deciding whether he wanted Levi beside him when talking to his dad, or in the living room and out of the possible crossfire, Eren sighed. Grisha wanted to meet Levi, after all.

Tugging at Levi’s arm, Eren led him into the kitchen. Levi silently set the mug in the sink before returning to stand directly beside Eren, their hands still locked, and Grisha stood from the table. His stance was stiff and the way he held himself intimidated Eren greatly. However, it didn’t faze Levi a single bit.

“Well,” Grisha spoke after a long period of silence. “Aren’t you going to introduce us, Eren?”

The boy stood there for a second, unsure of what to do. He felt like it was a trap and that the second he spoke Levi’s name a fucking cage would fall from the ceiling or some crazy shit like that. He looked up. There was no cage. He looked back to his father but didn’t speak.

Levi took the initiative. He extended his free hand toward the older man with the gentlest of smiles he could force (which was basically a smile that wasn’t caused by Eren) and introduced himself. “Great to meet you, Mr. Jaeger. My name is Levi.”

The two spoke for a while; Eren was incoherent to practically every word from their mouths unless his name was brought up but then he’d zone back out into his own little world of ‘holy fuck, my dad and my boyfriend are getting along’.

He left the world back in the corner of his mind and returned to reality, accompanied by the words “I’ve been in France for four months,” from Levi. Eren’s eyes darted from the black haired male to his father, listening closely to the exchange of words now.

“For what reason were you gone for so long? And so far away?” Grisha seemed intrigued.

“Studying abroad.” Levi sounded oh so casual and comfortable. It made Eren smile. “I’m interested in several fields, and a good portion of my ancestry is French, so I thought it’d be nice. I can’t speak the language worth a flying fuck,” Levi stopped to silently apologize for his crude language. “…according to Eren. Though it was nice to learn. Anyway… you’re a doctor, sir?”

It seemed as though the two could talk forever about whatever and by the time they shook hands again it seemed as though hours had gone by, when in reality it had only been about twenty-two and a half minutes.

“Pleasure to meet you, Mr.… I’m sorry; I didn’t catch your last name.”

Levi hesitated. Eren remembered how when he had met Levi he didn’t tell Eren his last name until about a month later, precisely four days before they started dating for whatever reason. “Rivaille.”

“Mr. Rivaille,” Grisha smiled. “Levi.”

“Same to you, Mr. Jaeger.” Levi paused, the same as Grisha had, almost in a teasing way. Eren’s eyes lit up in anticipation for whatever Levi was about to do. “I’m sorry,” the shorter male smirked playfully. “I didn’t catch your first name.”

Adjusting his glasses, Grisha breathed out a small laugh. “Grisha.”

-

And now the two were in Eren’s car once more, parked in the parking lot of the apartment complex Levi lived in. They had their seats reclined a bit less than halfway, hands linked together by tightly locked fingers and cool palms. All the while driving, Levi mocked Eren about how worried he had been.

No, they hadn’t left right away. Grisha and Levi talked a bit more while Eren figured out what happened when Mikasa came out. Turns out that Annie had pestered Mikasa—which seemed oddly out of character for her—until she finally made the choice to tell. At first, Grisha didn’t know how to react. Then he looked like he was going to yell, but his face calmed mere seconds after. Eren’s words had gotten to him; his words about Carla.

Now with hands tightly in each other’s, only the sound of their breathing as the sun took its early set outside. It was lightly snowing, but as the sun had been out the majority of the day, it didn’t stick much to anything and didn’t do much other than leave a deep chill in the air. Their winter jackets served their purposes well.

“So, I’ve been thinking…” Eren began, slowly turning his head to have Levi in his view. Levi was already looking at him, a sleepy look in his eyes.

“About?” Having been on France’s daylight schedule for four months, the drowsiness that Levi felt now was because it would be nearly midnight in France right now. Not to mention naps always left people groggy and tired, and jetlag was still an issue.

Eren squeezed Levi’s hand tightly. “Well… you met my dad today. It went well, right? You guys got along pretty damn great.” Levi nodded. “And… well… I was just wondering—”

“You want to meet my parents,” Levi finished the sentence for him. His eyes narrowed and his grip on Eren’s hand loosened. 

“Why?”

“Well, like I said… you met my dad. It’s only fair.”

Levi snorted. “Fair? No, Eren, me meeting your dad and getting along with him in the same sitting is luck.”

The teen sat up, lifting his back from the seat and looking at his and Levi’s hands. “You said it yourself earlier today, though. I’m lucky.”

“That was for the purposes of me sounding romantic and suave before kissing your stupid face.”

Sighing, Eren released his grip on Levi’s hand and began to fidget with his fingers. “You haven’t talked to them in, what, eight years?” Levi let out a sigh. “Wouldn’t it be nice for them to see what their son has grown into?”

“Grown is a strong word—”

“Levi!” Eren’s voice rose, almost startling the older male. “I’m being serious right now. I don’t just mean this for me; you really should go talk to them.”

“You don’t really have the right to make the decision for me, Eren.” Levi shrugged off the tone in Eren’s voice and folded his arms over his chest as he lie on the seat. “What makes you think they’ll even want to see me, eh?”

“It’s been eight years,” Eren repeated, more strongly this time. “Don’t you think it’s about time you guys made up?”

Honestly, this conversation in itself was starting to piss Levi off. “Shut up Eren. You may know what happened, but you weren’t actually there like I was. You don’t know how much it fucking hurt. I don’t want to see them.”

“Yes you do.” Eren’s tone was flat and cold in a way Levi had never heard from anyone before. “You’re just scared that something bad is going to happen. You’re scared—”

“I’m not scared.”

“—that for whatever reason, they’re going to be mean and hurtful, and as strong as you try to be, thinking your parents hate you will always be your weak spot no matter how tough you are as a person.”

“ _Weak spot_?” Levi let out a humorless, dry laugh. “You really just don’t understand, Eren.”

“What don’t I understand?” This time, Eren’s voice was softer than usual. “I wasn’t kicked out like you, but I did fight with my dad. I didn’t talk to him, really, for three months. Then we talked. We made up. He met you. He liked you. You got along. And it’s not like you had the worst life ever when your dad kicked you out; you had a rich best friend to keep you on your feet.”

“Keep Erwin out of this.”

Groaning, Eren lifted his hands up and ran them through his hair in frustration. “You’re not seeing my point!”

“And you’re not seeing mine.” The glare was harsh and Eren looked down at his lap as Levi spoke. “They don’t approve of me. My lifestyle. What makes you think they’ll approve of my relationship with you, anyway? You’re a seventeen year old high schooler with messy hair and a piss-everyone-off complex and pretty eyes.”

Eren smiled despite still being held under Levi’s glare. “They’ve had eight years to get over the fact that you like guys. Maybe they’ll approve of this messy haired high schooler. You don’t know unless you go talk to them.”

Levi didn’t respond. Instead, he looked away from the teen and stared out the windshield. It was nearly 6:30 now, growing darker and darker outside as the seconds passed. He was thinking it over. To be completely honest, Levi did want to see his parents. He could have put it off for another few years as he had no desire to talk to them just before his birthday, but… Eren was right.

“I’m tired.” The black haired male finally spoke. “You should walk me inside.”

And without a word, the two of them exited the car and strode closely together in the cold parking lot and into the building. The receptionist at the front waved them off, sitting back in her chair after doing so.

Levi and Eren waited for the elevator, got inside, went up to Levi’s floor and silently walked to the man’s door. Levi stuck his hands in his pocket and then let out a short grown followed by a muffled swear that sounded close to “fucking shit”, and leaned against the door without his keys.

“I do not want to go back down there and ask Rico to unlock my door,” He mumbled.

“Didn’t you and Petra exchange spares?” Eren offered. Levi stood straight.

“Sometimes you’re a fucking genius,” Turning on his heels, the black haired male walked across the hall and rasped his knuckles against the door the apartment his friend lived in.

Not too long after, the door opened and Auruo looked down at Levi. “Hm?”

“I need my key,” Levi was slightly embarrassed but he didn’t dare show it; not to this cocky bastard.

Petra wasn’t out of earshot and came rushing into view with the spare key. Something on her left hand glittered and when she held the key out to Levi he grasped her wrist and examined her left hand.

“Oh my _god_ ,” The ring sparked.

Petra giggled and Eren stepped forward to see it too. It was a beautiful engagement ring. “Petra… Auruo, guys, congrats.” The brunette smiled brightly.

Levi didn’t release Petra’s wrist until a few seconds and a stare off with the golden band passed. “You guys…” He breathed out and before he knew what he was doing he pulled Petra into a hug. “Nile was always wrong.”

Petra laughed and hugged Levi back, a big smile on her blushing face. “And you two will come, won’t you?”

“Where?” Eren asked stupidly.

Auruo blinked twice as though telling Eren with his eyes that he was a little moron. “Our wedding.”  
Nodding with Petra still in his arms, Levi spoke for the two of them. “Of course. I wouldn’t miss one of my best friends’ weddings for the world.” He finally released her and took the key.

“Well if that’s all,” Petra stepped back into her apartment beside Auruo and smiled toward the two males in the hall. “We’re about to go see my parents for dinner—” her tone became grave as though a murder was just committed. “—at Ral’s—” then returning to its normal, happy sound. “—to tell them the news. I’m so happy. Anyways~” She hummed and turned her back to them, walking further inside. “See you guys later!”

Levi nodded and Eren gave her and Auruo their farewells as Auruo shut their door and Levi unlocked his own. Turning to stand with his boyfriend, Eren let out a small sigh.

“What is it now,” Levi pushed his door open and walked inside, setting the spare key on his coffee table.

“I just think you should consider… never mind.” Eren shook his head and followed Levi inside. Placing his hand on the man’s shoulder, he turned Levi to face him and leaned down to kiss him on the lips. It was long, but their mouths didn’t move. It was almost awkward, much like their first kiss had been. “Get some rest, if you can mkay?” Eren smiled. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

The teen’s hands sunk to his sides but before he could move away Levi took Eren’s hands in his. Levi stared down at the gap between them as he spoke. “I’ll pick you up at eleven. We’re going out. I… will take you to meet my parents.”

Eren’s eyes lit up. “You will?” He sounded far too excited.

“Yeah…” Levi sighed and looked up at Eren now. “We’re going to drop in, I’m not calling them. I guess it’ll be kind of a—”

“Christmas miracle?”

Levi snorted. “Yeah, whatever you want to call it.”

Eren nearly squealed, yes, squealed, in delight. “Fuckin’ awesome. So eleven then—you mean our time, right? Not France—”

“Shut up and go home,” Levi growled, playfully. He pulled Eren down by his hands and left a small kiss on the boy’s lips before releasing him and turning away. “I’m going to take a shower and then going to bed, so don’t bother texting me until tomorrow morning.”

A small laugh escaped Eren’s lips as he turned also and made his way to the door. “See you tomorrow _Rivaille_.”

Eren’s use of his last name caught him off guard and he paused in the doorway leading to his bedroom. “Yeah. You too _Jaeger_.” He looked over his shoulder. “Love you.”

“Love you too.” Eren hummed, walking out and shutting the door behind him.

 _He called me Rivaille... That reminds me;_ Levi shoved his hand in his pocket and pulled his phone out. _I should probably see how Hanji is doing._

Levi: Are you alive

Hanji replied quicker than he had expected.

Hanji: Nope.

He almost laughed.

Levi: I take it you made it to Mike’s house okay?  
Levi: If that’s where you went.  
Levi: Or did Erwin kick you out halfway there.  
Hanji: Yeah I made it, thanks for caring ravioli  
Levi: Ravioli?  
Hanji: My phone doesn’t know how to spell your name.  
Levi: Try Levi.  
Hanji: For another time. Did you have a nice day with Eren?

Levi smiled. He did have a nice day with Eren. He really did.

Levi: I suppose. The brat is so clingy and cute. I forgot how much I actually missed being around him.  
Hanji: That’s so cute. You guys are like my OTP.  
Levi: What the fuck is OTP. Is that another Tumblr term?  
Hanji: You’re learning quickly, young grasshopper.  
Hanji: It means ONLY TRUE PAIRING. Except you can have like a million of them.  
Levi: that’s a stupid term if you can have more than one ONE true paring.  
Hanji: u don’t undERSTAND.  
Levi: Type normally or I’m not going to reply anymore.

He was almost sure Hanji was laughing at him.

Hanji: Sorry. I have to go anyway though, Mike made me dinner. How sweet of him, right?  
Levi: Have fun.  
Hanji: OH WAIT LEVI  
Levi: Why are you capping. You know what doesn’t actually mean you’re yelling.  
Hanji: YOU SAID your birthday was soon. When is it?  
Levi: Christmas.

He tossed his phone onto his bed and walked into the bathroom. _Time to shower._

-

Eren stepped through the front door and shut it behind him, breathing hot air on his cold hands as the heat clashed with the cool again. He made his way into the living room and exhaled happily when walking under the vent that administrated more of the warmth, then flopped down on the couch beside his sister.

“When did Annie leave?”

“A little after you and Levi did.” She leaned her head against her brother’s shoulder and let out a sigh. “Ya know, I wasn’t ready to tell him.”

Eren snorted. “I wasn’t either. Thanks for the help.”

“You know I didn’t intend to let it out.”

“I know.”

-

_December 22nd_

9:45 A.M. Levi: Are you up yet?  
 _9:51 A.M._ Levi: Reply now.  
 _9:54 A.M._ Levi: You need to reply.  
 _9:57 A.M._ Levi: Eren wake up.  
 _9:59 A.M._ Levi: I swear to god if you’re still sleeping.  
 _10:04 A.M._ Levi: You fucktard.  
 _10:48 A.M._ Levi: I’m leaving now. You’d better be ready when I get there.

Eren sat up. He had fallen asleep on the couch that night, watching whatever it was with Mikasa until she decided to get up and cover him up with a blanket from his room. His phone was still in his pocket and his shoes were still on. He hadn’t eaten dinner “Nnnhg…” He felt the distinct, gross feeling of damp drool sliding down his chin. As he wiped it off, he pulled his phone out to check the messages. Then he gasped. “Fuuuuuuuuu-huuuuck!”

He didn’t waste time replying as he rushed into his bedroom to get a change of clothes before rushing into the bathroom. The house was silent and he assumed if his father and sister weren’t sleeping, they were out doing whatever. His shower was rushed, the water so hot it scalded his skin before he had the sense to turn the cold on with it and scrub his skin and hair down; a literal five minute shower. 

He hopped out and dried off as quickly as he could, pulled on a clean pair of boxer-briefs and then nearly ripped his hair out whilst attempting to towel-dry it completely. He pulled his jeans up and his shirt over his head, but not before adding cheap roll-on deodorant and “fancy” cologne that he didn’t really need adding onto the scent of Dove soap and Mikasa’s watermelon scented shampoo.

Estimating he had a good five minutes left before Levi was to be there; he brushed his teeth (so quickly that the bristles ran across his gums and they bled a bit) and he even attempted to tame the constant-mess he called hair. No matter how hard he brushed it wouldn’t stay down, so with a sigh he gently combed through it. Right as he set foot in the living room he saw Levi’s car drive up from the window. Quickly as he could, Eren slid his shoes on and slid his phone into his pocket. He sat back on the couch and acted as casual as ever before Levi knocked on the door.

Eren got up and answered. He smiled down to his short boyfriend. “Worried?”

“You just got out of the shower didn’t you.” Eren cringed. Levi smirked and took Eren’s hand in his. “Come on.”

Pulling the door shut before he could be lead away, Eren followed Levi to his car. It was freezing outside and for however long it snowed after Eren had gotten home, it had managed to stick. Not much though; it was just powdered on the grass and trees and rooftops.

The two got into Levi’s car and not a word was spoken until they reached the second red-light. The grey sky held more snow flurries and as they fluttered to the ground and Levi’s windshield, Eren finally started a conversation.

“What’re your parent’s names?”

Levi glanced over to the teen. “It’d be a bit too informal if you just walked in and went ‘Hey Jim and Nancy,’ don’t you think?” Eren opened his mouth but Levi spoke before him. “Those aren’t their names. I was making a point.”

The teen nodded slowly. “I wasn’t going to walk in and greet them like that anyway. I just wanted to know. My dad’s name is Grisha. Mom’s name is Carla. There. Your turn.”

It grew silent again. Eren had thought he pissed Levi off so he began to shrink back in his seat. He almost started his apology before Levi spoke up. “Leveret and Ella.”

Eren thought about the names for a second and began to snicker. 

Levi snapped toward him. “What’s so funny?”

“Leveret, Ella, and Levi Rivaille.” He smiled toward Levi. “That’s quite a mouthful. Try saying that three times fast.”

An unamused smirk made itself known on Levi’s face. “Eren, I will kick you out of the fucking car.”

“Sorry.” The boy apologized. He wasn’t really sorry, though.

Their conversation for the rest of the way there was pretty much playful arguments and teasing to Eren’s expense. When Eren finally noticed how long they’d actually been driving—it’d been an hour—he has also seen the sign telling the road they were on. Sto—something.

“Your parents live really far from town…”

“Mhm.” Levi’s response a small hum. Eren looked toward him and saw something in the older man’s eyes he had never seen (much of) before. Worry. Levi was nervous. And now it was Eren’s turn to comfort him. As they pulled into Levi’s parent’s driveway Eren placed his hand to Levi’s shoulder. Blue eyes turned to look at him.

“Hey.” He used the same calm words and calm tone Levi had the night before. “It’ll be fine.”

Levi hesitated to lean forward and kiss the teen, but when he did, it was a long, warm, soft kiss. As they pulled away, Levi’s eyes darted away and he opened his door. Eren did the same and followed Levi up the steps of the Rivaille’s porch to the front door. Levi hesitated again but did finally manage to knock, and as his old habit never really went away, he rang the doorbell several times.

The door opened a minute later and there stood a short, blue eyed, dark brown haired woman. At first, she looked at Levi as though she’d never seen him before, but then as though those eight years without him came back to slap her in the face. Her jaw dropped slightly and without a word she pulled him into a hug. And he hugged back.

“Levi,” She murmured, her shaking fingers holding the fabric of his jacket tightly. “My god, Levi… Mon petit garçon, oh mon dieu, it’s been so long...”

The black haired male smiled slightly and laughed, embracing his mother tightly still. “Mom… I missed you.”

The embrace lasted longer than expected and when Levi’s mother finally released him, her eyes drifted to Eren. They darted back to Levi, the lively blue color that matched her son’s lighting up in anticipation for an answer to her silent question. The black haired male nodded once and Levi’s mother turned back to Eren with a smile.

“Eren, this is my mother, Ella…” Levi reached for Eren’s hand and held it proudly. “Mom... this is Eren. My boyfriend.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo. I spent forever (like 10 minutes, really) looking up French names, hence Levi's parent's names being what they are. I thought Levi's dad's name being Leveret would be cool and thats how they came up with the name "Levi" after all.
> 
> ALSO THE NEXT CHAPTER, FINALLY, AFTER 50k WORDS AND 23 CHAPTERS OF CRAP, THE BOYS ARE GONNA DO THE THING WITH THEIR THINGS. And it's gonna take me a little over forever to write it so stay tooned! c:


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I lied, unintentionally.
> 
> Eren meets Levi's father, the boyfriends go on a date, Eren meets yet another person, and there's a nice little ending.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried guys, I really did. Okay, this chapter could have been 10k fucking words because there was so much shit that needed to happen including the smut. I've been writing all day because I had no inspiration, or "oomph" as Kirschnickerdoodle puts it, to do anything at all.  
> And this chapter itself is almost 5000 words.  
> But I promise. I prooooooooomise. The next one, which I am still writing at this moment because I love you all and feel like a butt for breaking my last promise, will have the lovely making of the love between the two dorky boyfriends.  
> *whispers* I'm sorry, I really am, but I didn't want to post a 10k chapter.  
> The next chapter is already 3,685 words. So yeah, I thought that plus another rough estimate of 1500 would be a bit much for one chapter.

Levi watched silently as the two interacted. Eren had attempted to greet the short woman and shake her hand but he was pulled into a welcoming hug instead. He couldn’t help but smile when Eren hugged her back. She mumbled some French phrases against the boy’s chest before looking up at him.

“It’s great to meet you,” She glanced toward Levi. “And see you again.”

The short male was still smiling. “Eren talked me into it. I…” He wasn’t sure if he should say this or not. “…Didn’t really want to come see you guys. I was still dwelling on what happened eight years ago.”

Ella nodded, reaching out and pulling Levi in to hug both her and Eren to which the black haired male didn’t complain before wrapping his arms around the two. “I’m so sorry about that…”

Eren wanted to say something but was unsure of the words to use. As he opened his mouth to try, a fourth voice broke his concentration and the three on the porch turned to look at the man inside.

“Levi?” His voice was a shocked yet silent smooth tone. His hair was black like Levi’s with eyes as steely as his sons. He was shorter than Levi but taller than his wife. Eren wanted to laugh, though it would be inappropriate at the moment.

In response to his name, Levi released his mother and Eren and turned to the man. Their eyes locked and Eren could tell where Levi got his solemn stare from.

Levi spoke. “Father.”

Ella released Eren and stood between him and Levi—who was no longer smiling—now. Her brows were knitted into a worried expression, but she said nothing. Levi’s father began walking forward until he was outside of the house. He shut the door and glanced to his wife. “It’s cold. You don’t leave the door open.”

“Sorry.” She said silently. He only nodded before looking to Eren.

In that moment, Eren felt terrified. He’d met Levi’s mother who, in Levi’s story, laughed and cried and apparently spoke French. She was small and sweet and really seemed to like hugs. Levi liked hugs too—he was very cuddly, around Eren at least—so he wondered what Levi’s father would be like. And now he was staring right at him. And he was utterly terrified.

This was the man that made Levi change. The reason Levi could be so cold sometimes. This man had kicked his sixteen year old son out of his house for being gay. And now he was looking at his son’s boyfriend; his _gay_ son’s _boyfriend_ with the same look Levi had given him when he suggested the idea of seeing his parents.

Eren let out the breath he didn’t know he was holding and extended his hand toward Levi’s father to shake. Seconds passed. He was feeling rejected. He didn’t feel welcomed anymore, even with Levi’s sweet mother standing beside him and radiating kindness. As he began to pull his arm back, though, a rough-skinned hand grabbed his own and shook firmly. Out of the corner of his eye Eren could see Levi’s smile begin to come back. Neither of them spoke for a minute but Eren opened his mouth to introduce himself.

But Levi spoke for him. “Eren, this is my father.” Eren remembered the man’s name from when Levi had told him earlier in the car. Leveret. The teen smiled at his boyfriend’s father and Levi went on. “Dad, this is Eren. He’s… he’s really… I…”

Eren could see him starting to break a bit. He could see Levi’s serious gaze crack. Levi didn’t want to use the word boyfriend. He didn’t want his father to give him those looks. The green eyed teen wasn’t offended or hurt that Levi couldn’t say it to his father, to the man who had wronged him so long ago. So Eren decided, as Levi had done for him when meeting Grisha, that he would take the initiative.

“Hello, sir,” He smiled to hide his fear. Levi looked at him. “My name is Eren. I’m Levi’s—” He didn’t pause, but the realization that using this word could make many things, good or bad, happen hit him hard as the word slit out. “—boyfriend. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

There was a silence that pained the two boyfriends in a way they didn’t understand. It was like that silence when they had their fight back in August. The silence that kicked down their walls and invaded, causing those small moments of chaos and terror inside of them that, even though it didn’t last very long, left damage. The damage had healed in time, but this silence was just like that one.

Eren’s hand was still gripping Levi’s fathers’, and vice versa. The hand-shaking had ceased long ago, however. It felt as though they had been standing there for hours, staring each other down before Levi’s father finally spoke again.

His voice was softer than before, as was his expression. “He’s kept me waiting eight years to meet someone special, eh?”

Ella let out a small giggle. Eren smiled again, feeling calm and quite relieved. “Not quite.”

Leveret and Ella invited the two inside and out of them inside to which they complied and closed the door behind them. The two of them hadn’t realized how fucking cold it was outside until the heat from the Rivaille household hit them and made them practically rip their jackets off. After jackets met coat-hangers and fingers were no longer numb, Eren and Levi followed the Rivaille’s into their living room. Two cream colored couches placed around a rectangular coffee table with an arm chair of the same design on one side of the table with several small bookshelves lined with novels on either side of the TV across from the armchair. The fake-wood flooring shined like it would after have just been mopped (and vacuumed and swept and washed down with disinfectant and polished).

“You renovated.”

Eren and Levi sat on the couch to the left of the table and Levi’s parents sat across from them. There was another silence, but it was comfortable. Almost a tad too comfortable. Eren glanced over and saw that—despite them being invited in and Levi’s father being (seemingly) nice—Levi was still nervous. Shaking, even. He slid his hand over and held Levi’s hand in his, stroking his thumb over Levi’s and silently reassuring him that everything was okay.

And really, everything was okay.

“So, Eren,” Leveret began. “Care to tell us about yourself?”

He went on to tell them things like his birthday, he has a sister, he lives on Shinganshina and not too far from Levi’s apartment complex; things of that sort. He reluctantly told them his age, receiving a tight hand squeeze from Levi, to which his parents laughed and brought up that “You would be eighteen in March then, wouldn’t you Eren?”

Time passed; Levi’s fathers’ (unobvious) unease drifted away as the seconds and minuets went by, the four of them enjoying their conversations and learning things about each other. Eren learned where Levi got his “must clean everything so it sparkles and shines” OCD, which of his two parents Levi shared the most resemblance with (like Eren with Carla, it was Levi with Ella), and who he got his habit of talking that way from. It was then he discovered Levi was exactly like his parents. Their speech patterns, the way they use their hands when they talk, even the way they blink before they laugh really hard.

Ella spoke in French when she got really excited about things so half the time Eren had no idea what she was saying until she apologized and said it again in English. Both of Levi’s parents were from France, but Levi’s father had come to America when he was just a baby. He then moved back when he was nineteen and he met Ella when she was only sixteen. 

They practically hated each other for three years until Ella went off to a private college all the way in England. Ella explained how that’s how their love story started; he went after her and they talked. They became friends and he’d come to see her every morning and they would talk some more before she went to class. And then… Levi snorted at the way Ella told the story with Leveret sitting there, just nodding. It was a nice story. It was cute.

And it explained why Levi’s parents were so young looking.

After a while of stories Eren’s stomach growled and Ella took him to the kitchen while Levi and his father continued to talk. After being offered some type of French _thing_ that sounded delicious yet repulsive at the same time, he reluctantly requested a bowl of cereal. His request was granted.

“Oh,” Eren looked up as Ella sat across from him at the small table in the kitchen. She tilted her head and looked at him, her soft blue eyes lighting up with the curiosity of his impending question. “Um… is it weird that I don’t know when Levi’s birthday is?”

She laughed and he felt a bit embarrassed, his cheeks flushing and telling her that for him. “No, that isn’t weird, Eren. It’s the twenty-fifth of December—Christmas. He doesn’t really like to tell people. Or, at least he didn’t when he was a teenager. I suppose he still doesn’t.”

“His birthday is Chri—” Eren almost choked on his cereal.

“Chew, swallow, _then_ speak, sweetie.” Ella snorted. Yet another thing Levi resembled her in.

-

A few hours went by—Eren smiling for most of them as he watched his boyfriend catch on anything and everything with his parents. He didn’t mind not being in every second of every conversation because this wasn’t about him at all. It was about Levi.

The two finally left after many hugs from Ella and Eren receiving another handshake from Leveret. It had begun snowing again by the time they had made it out to Levi’s car and they shivered until the head finally filled the car and they could regain feeling in their numb fingers again.

Levi waved out the window at his parents and backed out of their driveway. He glanced at the clock while heading down the road. “Damn. We were there for five hours…”

It was nearly six. Eren couldn’t help but smile again. “You enjoyed your time with them, it went by fast.”

“Yeah,” Levi responded quietly. “I just remembered I didn’t take you out for lunch. How’s dinner sound?”

The boy began to bat his eyelashes as though trying to be cute. “Are you asking me on a date Leeeevi?”

Levi snorted and Eren laughed again. The black haired man leaned back in his seat as they came to a red light. “I suppose I am. This’ll be the first time in months we’ve gone out. Guess that’s my fault.”

“Technically it’ll only be our third date. Tell that story to anyone dating as long as we have—” Eren began to snicker. “They’d think you’re cheap.”

“And why is that?” Levi looked at him.

“Eight months and only three dates—two if you don’t count the one we haven’t gone on yet.”

“You must take me for a rich man with shitloads of money to spend on pretty little boys.” Levi replied coldly, yet the warmth in his eyes balanced it out. He looked forward again. “So, I’m not taking you anywhere fancy because I probably have like thirty bucks on me.”

“Let’s go see Petra,” Eren offered. “She’s probably working tonight, don’t you think?” Levi nodded. Eren smiled and leaned back in his own seat, looking out the window. “Look at all the Christmas lights.”

“They’re so festive,” Levi hummed in response, his eyes remaining on the road. The sun had set not too long ago and the lights on houses and trees and streetlamps (along with the streetlamps) illuminated the surrounding areas. It was nice. It was pretty, and calming.

The ride didn’t seem that long on the way back as the two talked about other holidays they enjoyed—or didn’t enjoy—and things of that nature. By the time they had gotten to the small cluster of stores it was six twenty; large snow flurries were falling from the sky and sticking to their jackets and hair and eyelashes. They passed the game exchange store and the lights for Ral’s were, as expected, still on. The cashier and the two waitresses had Santa hats on and there was a small fishbowl-like jar on the counter that had red and green candy canes.

They stepped inside, the jingling of the bell above the door sounding their arrival. The cashier looked up and smiled as the two of them walked up. She was Petra’s cousin, who—as Levi remembered—was the cashier last time he had been there. He didn’t know her name, but she was small like Petra, so he called her Little Ral. She greeted them.

“Is Petra working?”

“She’s on her break,” Little Ral replied, leaning over the counter as she spoke. “She’ll be in soon. Want me to send her to your table when she’s done?”

Levi nodded and Little Ral pointed to an empty table by the window—the last few times Levi came here (even the one time with Eren), he had sat there—and smiled. Levi led Eren over to the booth and they sat across from each other. Not much time passed before the small ginger appeared beside their table, her short hair tied back into a ponytail and a smile on her face.

“Didn’t think I’d see you two here tonight,” She hummed and passed out the two menus. “Drinks?”

“Coffee,” Levi replied. “You know how I like it.”

“Hot chocolate,” Eren smiled.

“I should have guessed; same as always, you two.” She giggled and jotted down their drink orders. “Mhm, well I’ll be back in a minute with your drinks.”

The two nodded and began looking through their menu’s as Petra walked off. “You’re such a child,” Levi said after a minute. “Hot chocolate…”

“It’s cold.” Eren replied, still smiling. He peeked out from above his menu to his boyfriend whose face was hidden by the other menu. “And I like hot chocolate. Anyway, what are you getting?”

Levi was about to respond when he felt a hand grasp his shoulder. Looking up, he snorted. “Oi, Erwin…”

“Thought it was you,” He smiled and put his other hand on Eren’s head to ruffle the teens’ hair. Eren smiled up at the tall blond. “Good to see you two here. Sorry to interrupt your date. I was actually going to call you a bit later, though I didn’t know if you had plans for later.”

“Call for what?” Levi was still looking up at Erwin.

“Well you see, I’ve been busy with work and have yet to go Christmas shopping. And I wanted you to come with me, I need to get you something and we’re not kids expecting things from Santa so I figured you could pick it out and I could just give it to you in two days.”

Levi nodded. “Sounds fun.” He looked over to Eren. “Can you handle a day without me, brat?”

A laugh passed through Eren’s lips as he went back to looking through his menu. “That’s fine,”

“Alright then,” Erwin released his grip on Levi’s shoulder. He turned his head and snorted. “Oh, and—”

Suddenly Eren had his shoulders grabbed from behind and Levi set his menu down to give the person behind Eren an annoyed expression. “Who would’ve thought you two would be eating here the same time as us!”

“Can you quiet down; I’m literally three feet away from you.” Levi growled. He then let out a sigh as Eren turned to face the person holding his shoulders. A female, her hair pulled back into a messy ponytail and glasses that shot a glare of light from the ceiling into his eye for a minute before she leaned back and released her grip on him. He recognized her but he couldn’t quite remember her name.

“Hanji,” Levi sighed and glanced to Erwin. “Why is she here? I assume you brought her.”

“I did, actually,” Mike said from behind Eren with a take-home container in a bag in his left hand.

Erwin smiled. “Levi, Eren, this is Mike, and Eren hasn’t met Hanji, has he?”

“Not in person.” The black haired male sighed again.

“Oooh, this is Hanji,” Eren blinked at the female he now faced. “Hi.”

She moved up to the side of the booth and slid into Eren’s seat. “You don’t hate me like grumpy-cat over there do you?”

“Uh—”

“Grumpy-cat,” Mike snorted.

“Shut up all of you.” Levi hissed. He flipped the page of his menu before speaking again. “We’re on a date. Can you, like, not be over here?”

“Ah, yeah, sorry,” Erwin laughed. “Didn’t mean to interrupt. See you tomorrow, then,” He began to talk off, but Hanji gripped onto Erwin’s forearm when he attempted to pass her.

“What’s tomorrow?” She asked, brown eyes full of curiosity.

“The twenty-third,”

“Shut up,” Hanji shot a glare toward Levi, who shrugged, and looked back up to Erwin. “Hm?”

“We’re going Christmas shop—”

She gasped. “Oh, let me come! There’s someone I haven’t gotten a gift for and Mike has to work early and will have the car. Pleeeease?”

Levi groaned. “Please no.”

“Of course,” Erwin ignored Levi. Petra slid in past Erwin and the table beside him to give Levi and Eren their drinks. She stood beside Levi’s booth-seat as though waiting for the other three to leave before asking what the two boyfriends wanted to eat. “I’ll call you both before I come to get you.”

Levi groaned again and Eren couldn’t help but laugh. “Byeee!” Erwin took Hanji from beside Eren and he and Mike began to drag her halfway to the exit before she insisted she could walk.

“Thank was fun,” Eren smirked toward Levi. He rolled his eyes.

“Alright, you two,” Petra smiled, watching the teen take a sip of his hot chocolate then looking to Levi. “Made a decision yet?”

-

“I don’t see why Petra hates eating there so much,” They less than halfway to Eren’s house now as the boy turned his head to say so. “Their food is so good.”

“It’s because she’s there a good portion of her time there and probably gets tired of it.” Levi replied coolly, looking out his window as they pulled up to a red-light. “Hnn…”

“Why the sigh?” Eren arched a brow, leaning toward Levi and staring him in the face, though Levi wasn’t looking back.

“Eh,” He shrugged. “Just our date was kind of interrupted.”

“Hanji seems nice,” Eren smiled before sitting normally with his back to his seat again. Levi shot him a look of _what the fuck is wrong with you_ mixed with _are you fucking crazy_. The teen laughed. “Well, I know you hated her, but that was months ago right? You guys are friends now.”

The light turned green and Levi went. “I wouldn’t say ‘friends’.” Levi cringed at the word though he knew he and Hanji were in fact friends, _especially_ after the whole manga incident. He sighed. “Though, we are. Let’s change the subject, eh? What’re you going to do while I’m out shopping with Erwin and princess shitty-glasses tomorrow?”

Eren shrugged. “I’ll probably hang out with Armin or something. I dunno. Maybe I’ll wrap your present.”

“Oi. Still haven’t—” Levi paused, staring at the road as he processed the words Eren had said. “You got me something?”

“Duh,” Eren smirked. “Of course I would, what kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn’t get you something for Christmas?”

“A shitty one. What’d you get me?”

“I’m not telling you.” He sang; Levi turned left and pulled into the boys driveway, shooting him another glare. He hummed. “It wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you, Levi.”

“I hate surprises.” The older male sighed but graced Eren with a smile anyway. “Well, get out of my car. I’ll call you tomorrow after shopping; if it’s not late you can come over or something.”

“Mkay,” The teen leaned over and pressed his lips to Levi’s. He intended to make it short, a peck, but before he could pull away Levi had his hand on the back of the boys head, their lips still connected. Keeping Eren’s head still, Levi parted the teen’s lips with his tongue and entered his mouth, Eren reacting somewhat slowly and sliding his tongue across Levi’s.

Their mouths were warm and though Levi hated tasting food this way, Eren’s tongue and lips made up for it without protest. He lifted his other hand to the boy’s shoulder and as he did this, Eren’s hands found their way to Levi’s hips. Levi took that as an invitation to crawl across the space between their seats and into Eren’s lap.

The noises of their lips smacking together and their tongues clicking were the only sounds in the car aside from their slow breaths. Levi rocked his hips into the boys lap and was rewarded by light moans from Eren that were silenced in his throat. They kissed hungrily, almost violently (more on Levi’s part); both attempting to turn their heads in the same direction and ended up clashing teeth. Levi pulled away and licked his lips. The look in his eyes sent a shiver down Eren’s spine and the smirk that revealed itself on Levi’s face did even more so. Eren whimpered, his face beginning to turn a bright crimson and he looked away.

“G-get off my lap,” He breathed out.

“Ah, poor thing.” Levi snorted as he drew back, returning to the driver seat. “Have fun with that then.”

Eren looked down into his lap and let out an annoyed groan that sounded less annoyed than he wanted it to and more of something else. He pulled his jacked down over the bulge in his pants that Levi had caused. 

“Shut up,” He reached for the door handle and opened the door, forcing himself to slide out. “This isn’t funny.”

“It if helps you can think of me.”

Rolling his eyes, Eren grabbed his take home container and shut the door. He turned his back to the car and began to walk uncomfortable toward the house, holding his jacket over his crotch with one hand and the bag with the other. From behind him, Levi rolled down the passenger-side window and shouted out. “Hey, asshole. I love you~”

Eren smiled and looked over his shoulder. “I love you too!” He called back. Levi backed out of the driveway and began to head for his apartment complex. Eren turned forward again and walked stiffly toward the door. Thankfully it was unlocked; he held the bag with his other hand, not daring to release his jacket. Finally he managed to get the door opened with his shaking fingers and shut the door behind him. He went into the kitchen to put his food in the fridge for later. And finally he managed to get to his bedroom and threw his jacket off and to the ground. 

Shutting the door behind him after his jacket made contact with the floor, he groaned while walking to his bed. He had to do something about this.He didn’t want to make a big fuss over it and made haste pushing his jeans and boxer-briefs below his knees after lying on his bed.

Images of that beautiful black haired man he was making out with in a car not too long ago flew into his head as he worked on himself; biting his lip as he pumped. He imagined it was Levi’s hand, imagined he heard his boyfriend’s voice in his head.  
 _‘God you fucking brat, you’re enjoying this more than I thought you would. You like when I touch you this way, don’t you?’_ “Fuck yes,” the teen moaned through clinched teeth. _‘Mmm, I like the way you sound right now, Eren,’_ “I-I know you do—ah—nnh—” Eren bit down on his bottom lip and began to pump faster. _‘Say my name Eren, say it loud. I want to hear you say my name you little shit,’_ “L-Levi—Leeeevii,” He moaned. “Levi—” _‘Oi, Eren, Christ… I bet you’d be even louder if I was inside of you right now. I bet you’re a tight little fuck. Remember when I watched you do this? Ah, yeah, you remember… when my eyes were on you, watching you, now cum for me Eren.’_ One last moan; a twitching hand around his erection, “Levi—Levi~!”one last jerk before he decided he really needed to shower.

In a minute, he told himself and Levi’s voice. _I’ll shower in a minute… let me catch my breath._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So if the next chapter isn't out by Sunday afternoon, it will be done between Monday and Tuesday. But I have finals all this week so, *screeches into the moon* pray for me.
> 
> Also, again, really sorry about the making of love not being in this chapter v_v I'm just really tired and amazed that I even got passed this point.


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some stuff happens and they do the do I'm not even going to make this summary pleasing to the eye because it took too damn long to finish the chapter. Also, beware of French.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter. Is so. Fucking long. But there is smut, as previously promised. Second time writing it, and I tried so fuCKING HARD TO MAKE IT ROMANTIC.
> 
> ~The French in this chapter is basically "I love you" and shit; the other French stuff is translated within the story except for one thing that when i used google translated it said kid shit instead of shitty brat. so
> 
> *"Je t'aime aussi, beaucoup, gosse de merde. au revoir" was supposed to translate to "I love you too, very much, shitty brat. Bye" Don't look it up because the 'actual' translation is just... like wtf.

_December Twenty-third_

“You look tired as fuck.”

“Shut up shitty-glasses. I didn’t sleep well.”

“Why?”

They sat in wait in Erwin’s car while the man was inside the gas station to pay for his fuel. Levi sat in the passenger seat, turning to look back and argue with Hanji like siblings awaiting their mother to return.

“I had things on my mind.”

“Liiiiiiike?”

“Stop stretching your words.” Levi growled. “You sound like a fucking ten year old.”

“Damn, wake up on the wrong side of the bed?”

“I didn’t sleep at all.”

“So… did you _lay down_ on the wrong side of the bed?”

“Jesus Christ you’re annoying.”

“Can I see your phone?” Hanji laughed at the look on Levi’s face. “Calm down Levi, my god. I’m kidding.”

“I wouldn’t give it to you anyway.” He mumbled.

Erwin finally returned and got back in the car. He shut his door and glanced over at Levi then at Hanji. “Sorry it took me so long.”

“She’s annoying as hell.” The shortest of the three folded his arms and looked out the window, leaning back in his seat.

“And he’s just too precious for words, don’t ya’ think, Commander?”

Erwin snorted and Levi arched an eyebrow. “‘Commander’?”

As Erwin pulled out from the gas station and drove off for the mall, he just shook his head with a laugh. “She heard Mike call me that when I dropped her off at his house on Saturday. Kind of a company inside joke. Anyway, she’s called me that every chance she’s gotten.”

“Commander Erwin,” Hanji hummed and saluted with two fingers against her forehead and then dropping her hand to lap again. “Aaaand Corporal short-fry!”

“Why am I being brought into this army nickname shit? No; fuck off,” Levi massaged his temples and looked out the window to hide his smile from Hanji and Erwin.

-

“What do you mean you’re not home?” Eren groaned, staring up at his ceiling with his phone clutched tightly in his hand to his ear.

“Well, normally when people say they’re not home,” Armin’s calm voice replied through the receiver. “It means they are not within the premises of their living quarters.”

Eren let out another groan. “Don’t be an ass, Armin. Where are you? With Jean?”

“Nah. I’m out with my Grandpa. We’re heading to the post office because he’s got some letters to mail out before Christmas but first he’s taking me out to lunch. What’d you want to do anyway? Isn’t Levi back? Why aren’t you hanging out with him?”

“He’s shopping with his friends. I’m bored.”

“Oh. Um… didn’t you say you wanted to learn French?”

“Yeah,” He let out a sigh. “Google Translate isn’t the best help though.”

Eren heard Armin’s grandpa on the other line, not quite able to make out what he was saying, and Armin’s response to him which was ‘Yeah, just a second,’ before he replied to Eren. “Sophomore year, Jean took French. He got a ninety-seven in the class. You could ask him to teach you.”

“I really don’t—”

“Shut the heck up—” Armin’s grandfather was definitely nearby if Armin was using the word ‘heck’. “—I don’t care if you guys don’t always get along. You’re my best friend and he’s my boyfriend and you will be friends if I have to lock you in a room together for three freaking days. I’m sure he’d be more than willing to teach you if you ask him.”

“Armin—”

“I doooooon’t want to hear it. And I have to go now, I’m hungry and we’re about to go inside. Bye,”

“Armiiiiiii—”

“B’bye, Eren~” Armin hung up.

The brunette sat up and let out a deep sigh. He did want to learn French because of the text he had received (from whom he figured was Hanji). He wanted to learn it, also, because of what Levi had said that he wouldn’t translate after. Armin had forced Jean and Eren to exchange numbers through guilt tripping: “What if something happens and one of you have to contact the other?”

His phone lit up as he selected the contact and he laid back down, laying his other arm across his face as he waited for Jean to pick up.

“Eren?”

“Hey, Jean, can I request a favor from you?”

“Depends… what is it, Eren?”

-

“You look like an idiot with those sunglasses on, Erwin. It’s mid-December. What do you even need those for?”

Erwin chuckles and removed the shades from his face, placing them back on the rack before shrugging and passing Levi. “I was trying to look cool.”

“You’re a failure.”

“Hey, he tried. He deserved a gold star for trying,” Hanji said from behind Levi, playing with the thick grey and black striped scarf she had just purchased for Mike.

“Nobody asked you,”

“Levi, be nice.” Erwin warned.

“Does he even have the ability to be nice?”

“Shut up.” Levi hissed.

-

Jean’s house was a bit more welcoming than Eren had expected as he stepped inside. He followed Jean into the living room and they sat on the large red couch that lined a good portion of the wall closest to the hallway. His house was larger than Eren had been expecting too, and he had made a point to tell him that.

Jean had no idea how to tutor someone. “Okay, let’s start with something easy—er… let’s just jump right into it.” Eren nodded. “Something easy, something easy… Bonjour.”

“I know bonjour; it means hello.”

“Right. Au revoir.”

“Um…”

“Opposite of bonjour.”

“Oh. Goodbye?”

“Oui. That means yes, by the way. Umm…”

“Don’t strain yourself, Jean.”

Jean glared at him and folded his arms. “Okay, why do you want to learn French anyway?”

“Well… Sometimes Levi says things to me in French and I want to know what they mean but he won’t translate. And I got a text from his friend—I’m pretty sure it was her—saying I needed to learn for some reason.” Eren explained.

“Oooh, you wanna impress your boyfriend.” Jean snorted. He leaned back against the touch and nodded. “Alright, I’ll help ya. Je vais vous apprendre quelques mots importants et nous allons travailler sur le phrasé.” Eren blinked, unable to comprehend and process what he had said, or even begin to translate. “I said I'll teach you some important words and then we'll work on phrasing.”

“Oh. Okay”

“And annunciation, can’t forget about that. Alright, mon nom est. That mean’s ‘my name is’. Like you’re introducing yourself. Easy enough, right?”

“Mon nom est.” Eren said with ease.

“Right. Alright, let’s see…”

-

“Levi, do me a favor and run over to the Post Office for me.” Erwin stood in line at check out, Hanji and Levi beside him with the last of their things to purchase. They’d been shopping for hours now, their feet hurt, and the three of them were ready to leave. Really, they only should have bought like four things total. It ended up being about eleven things each.

“What for?”

“I need stamps and shipping packages for some of this stuff. I figure it’d be easier for you to just do it while Hanji and I wait here and we can all meet back up at the car.”

Levi thought about it for a minute. He could either wait there in line with Erwin and the Queen of Nevershutsherfuckingmouth with a bunch of bags and boxes of things they needed to buy, or he could leave his things with Erwin and leave to buy stamps. Really, neither of them could possibly be more enjoyable than the other, but one of them was quieter.

He evenly distributed his to-be-boughts to the two of them and army saluted as Hanji did earlier before heading out of the store and heading across the lot to the Post Office. Pushing the doors open, he made a beeline for the shelf that held stamps of all colors and designs.

“Levi?” He heard his name being called by a voice he recognized but couldn’t quite place it onto a face. Reaching forward to grab an $8 pack of 40 stamps, he turned to see a boy not much taller than he with golden hair.

“Armin,” He greeted him. They had met a few times, once before Eren and Levi had begun dating, they went to the movies with a few of Eren’s friends. Levi vowed never to go anywhere with Eren’s friends again after that. “What’re you doing here?”

“My grandpa is mailing some letters,” He replied gleefully. “What about you? Buyin’ some stamps?”

“For Erwin. And some shipping boxes.” The conversation was meaningless, but before Armin could say his goodbye and return to his grandfather, Levi realized he had something to ask. “Oh, Armin, you were the one that burned Eren that CD, right? The one with all those newish songs?”

Armin nodded. “Yeah, why?”

“I need to know the name of that one song. It’s by a woman; I think it was the fourth song. It’s a love song, a bit repetitive in the chorus?”

Smiling, Armin nodded again. “I know the one.”

“What is it called?”

-

Eren thanked Jean as before shutting the door and heading out to his car. It was snowing again, but not enough for anything to stick and paint the ground white. He climbed into his car and put the key in and began on his way home.

He had managed to learn quite a bit, including some phrases he wouldn’t hesitate to use on Levi soon; phrases like “you’re so beautiful” and “I love you so much” in loving whispers, in French, that only Levi would hear and reply to. Eren smiled at the thought of telling Levi how much he loved him in one of the most romantic languages known to man, he smiled at the reaction he imagined Levi would give him before replying. He smiled at the thought of Levi saying it back in the same way.

When he got home, the Christmas tree was plugged in and the sun was setting just behind the clouds. It was already dark, but he shrugged. He spent his day well. He hurried inside and after he shut the door, the aroma of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies came from the kitchen. His feet took him to the kitchen though he didn’t protest and he smiled at the sight of his black haired sister closing the oven door and placing a tray of hot cookies on the table. She looked over at him.

“Heeey, where’ve you been all day?”

“Jean taught me how to speak French. You made cookies,” He reached toward the tray only to have his hand smacked away by Mikasa.

“I literally just took these out. Unless you want your fingers to be burned and the color of my scarf, I suggest you give them a second to cool down.” She paused before placing her hands on her hips. “Why did you have Jean teach you Fren—oh don’t tell me. You wanna woo Levi; you’re so pathetic.”

“I am not!” Eren folded his arms and looked away. “There’s nothing pathetic about it. It’s cute.”

Mikasa snickered and rolled her eyes, turning to turn the oven off. “I swear you’re gayer than gay sometimes.”  
Eren copied her previous action and placed his hands on his hips. “Coming from the most secretive lesbian ever, I take it as a compliment.”

“Eat a cookie and burn your tongue off, shithead.” Mikasa wanted to sound mean, but it was hard for her and Eren to sound mean or stay mad at each other, and so they never really were. They normally, always, laughed whatever it was off. “But no, that’s the only reason?”

“I’d like to be able to know what he says when he teases me,” The brunette reached back toward the tray and picked up a slightly cooled cookie that still managed to burn his fingers. Regardless, he hastily shoved it in his mouth to ease the pain on his fingers and he chewed it quickly, making gross faces and nearly biting his own tongue off to swallow the hot treat. He whimpered as it scalded his tongue and throat and breathed a sigh of relief when it was down.

His sister laughed. “You’re ridiculous.” 

-

Erwin dropped Levi off first and he and Hanji both offered to help Levi carry his bags up, but he refused. He bid them a goodnight and got out of the car. He made his way into the building, ignoring the cold air that assaulted him and exhaled happily when entering the warm building.

Rico turned to him as he attempted to adjust the bags and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose before she spoke. “Need some help over there?” Levi shook his head and she shrugged, waving him off.

Once he got in the elevator and began going up he was able to fix the bags. It felt like forever that the elevator was going up and when it finally got to his floor, Levi felt as though he were going to fall asleep right there. He managed to push himself out and into the hallway and went on to his door, and thankfully he remembered his key. Pulling it from his pocket after setting some of the bags down, he unlocked the door and shuffled awkwardly inside, off-balance before he picked the other bags back up and shut the door with his foot.

Levi was tired, but he had something he needed to do. He didn’t really care to wrap the presents, and he didn’t have a tree to put them under anyway, so he just laid them in their bags nearly against the wall and out of his way. His laptop remained on the coffee table in his living room and he booted it up. After he downloaded the song Armin had told him the name off, he was going to call Eren and make plans for Christmas Eve, then shower, then sleep. Or try to sleep, at least.

Within two minutes the song had finished downloading and Levi turned his laptop back off. Pulling his phone out of his jeans pocket and shimmying his jacket off, he selected Eren’s number from his contacts and held the phone to his ear while walking across the room to hang his coat up.

“How was shopping?” Was the brunettes greeting after four rings.

“My feet fucking hurt. Anyway, I’m going to be busy most of tomorrow—” the sigh that had pushed itself past Eren’s lips made Levi’s brows furrow. “—until about eight. So if it’s cool with your dad or whatever, you should come over. I’ll cook you dinner and we can exchange presents.”

Eren’s voice sounded happier than the sigh had. “Oh, okay. That sounds nice.”

“Yeah, but drive yourself over here, okay? I want to make sure everything is nice and neat without having to worry if something spills over while I’m out getting you.”

The childish snort-laugh that came from Eren made Levi want to hang up, punch him in the face, and kiss him on the lips all at once. “Always so worried about messes.”

“No, it’s more like I won’t want to set the complex ablaze with all my shit inside.” Eren laughed again. Levi smiled. Eren had the cutest laugh. “So, sound like a plan?”

“Sounds more like a date. On Tuesday. A _Tues_ -date.”

Levi groaned. _What the fuck was that, Eren?_ “Oh my god, that pun would make anyone else hang up on you.”

“But not you; not my boyfriend, king of the shit-jokes. You love my stupid puns.”

“No, I love you, he who makes horrible puns.”

“Et Je t'aime, Levi.” Eren replied softly.

Levi froze. Another smile graced his lips and he let out a small, happy sigh. He wouldn’t question the boy, of where he had learned. He figured Google Translate was a constant tool for Eren these days. “Je t'aime, Eren. Alright… my feet are still killing me and I’m sitting down. I’m going to shower. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, brat.”

“Can’t wait for our daaaaaate,” Levi could practically feel Eren batting his eyelashes like he had on Sunday. “Bye, Levi,” He hummed. “I love you,”

“Yes, Je t’aime, Eren, Je t'aime aussi, beaucoup, gosse de merde. Au revoir.” He heard the confused whimper from his boyfriend and smirked, satisfied with his victory. “See you,”

“Yeah,” Eren breathed into the phone. “See you,”

The call ended. Levi left his phone on the table as he forced himself up and toward his bedroom. He groaned and flopped down at his bed. Looking at his alarm clock he saw it was only seven. He didn’t care, he was tired and if his body would allow, he was going to sleep. He’d just shower in the morning before going grocery shopping and setting everything up for Eren. Kicking his shoes off and deciding he’d pick up tomorrow too. It wasn’t even messy, really. But everything needed to be perfect.

Absolutely perfect.

For Eren.

_Je t'aime, Eren._

-

_December Twenty-fourth; Christmas Eve_

Levi jerked awake and looked toward his alarm clock. It was seven A.M. He cringed. “Why the fuck am I up so fucking early… Oh right,” He explained to no one in particular. “I went to bed at seven.” He forced himself up from bed and picked his shoes up before tripping over them. He placed them out beside the couch. He had plenty of time; however he made haste when eating breakfast, scarfing down a bowl of cereal followed by an apple, then throwing the core into the trash. He began to wipe down the kitchen—the counters, the cabinets, the fridge, even the sink.

He made his way to the living room and mopped the floors and wiped the coffee table down, dusted the shelves and even the inside of the lampshades. Then he went to his bedroom and realized he hadn’t slept underneath the blanket, but despite this he remade his bed anyway. He had remade it twice before deciding to change the sheets and wash these. And so he remade his bed with new sheets and balled the others up, deciding after he got out of the shower he would take his dirty clothes down to the laundry room along with the sheets.

Making his way to the bathroom, he stripped down without a towel or pair of clothes ready after he showered. His apartment was warm and his room was right outside the bathroom so there was no need, really. Turning the hot water on, he stepped in and his muscles relaxed when the warmth ran over his skin. He ran his fingers through his hand, pushing it out of his face and grabbed the soap. He wanted everything, to be perfect, look perfect, smell perfect, _taste_ perfect when Eren arrived later that night. That included himself.

After a thorough washing, he walked back into his bedroom. The clock read 8:30 A.M. and he let out a sigh. There was so much more to do, but even if he did take his time he knew he’d still have so much time left to wait. And so he took his time drying off and getting dressed, brushing his teeth and combing his hair, putting on deodorant and mentally deciding to save the cologne for later (or maybe never since he already smelled like complete and utter clean).

He took his dirty clothes and old sheets down to the laundry room and stuck them in one of the washers. With thirty minutes to spare, he headed back up to his space and cleaned his bedroom and the bathroom. Then he went backed and wiped down every window and class surface with glass cleaner. He didn’t stop until he could clearly see his face. Thirty minutes passed and he rushed back down to the laundry room to collect his things. Once they were folded, he returned to his room. Levi was sure he had lost a few pounds from all this walking. He looked at the time on his phone. 9:14.

It was too early to go grocery shopping so he sat down on the couch and took a minute to relax. He closed his eyes and ended up taking a little nap. When he woke up it was eleven. He almost smiled. He put his shoes on and pulled on his coat, grabbing his car keys and apartment key, he left to purchase what all he needed.

Time dragged on and despite it being Christmas Eve, everyone and their brother was food shopping today. Levi had to push his way through everyone to gather the items for his meal and then some. Then he waited in a big ass line behind a bunch of stupid ass people.

He must have been grocery shopping for two hours as it was now one twenty-six when he got back home. He put all of the food items into the fridge and let out a deep breath, leaning against the counter as he admired his handiwork. Every room was spotless and sparkling and you could eat off of the floor if you so desired—though if you did Levi would probably kill you.

Time was still on his side, though at the same time it was against him as it was dragging on, he began planning what to do next. Decorate or cook? Cook or decorate? He pulled a packaged with a white cloth out from one of the shopping bags and tore it open, tossing the plastic in the trashcan and unfolding the cloth. He spread it across the table and had a minor fit when the places where it was folded remained bent and kept coming up on the table. After fighting and losing a war with the stupid thing, he just ended up taping the sides of the cloth to the tale. He was displeased by how it took away from the beautiful scene he had imagined, but if the fucking thing was going to be an issue he might as well have not used it. But he was going to use it because he spent three fucking dollars on it.

1:39; it wasn’t time to start cooking, not yet, so he looked around for something he could do to pass about an hour’s time. He could clean some more, but then he may die from the fumes from his cleaning chemicals. He wasn’t hungry, and he wanted to save his appetite for later anyway, so there was no point in making lunch. Walking into his living room and around the couch, he sat on the middle cushion.

As he waited for it to allow him to sign in, he pulled the device onto his lap and looked around his clean living room. He ended up putting the newly bought presents from shopping the day before in his bedroom closet. He thought about gifts for a moment and began to smile, remembering what he was going to give to Eren on Christmas. Imagining the boys expression when he sees two tickets for Paris, France; priceless.

Levi signed in to his laptop and it loaded rather quickly. The time now was only 1:45, and he was almost disgusted by the amount of time he had to do whatever he wanted before cooking, when really the only thing he wanted to do was see Eren. But no, he couldn’t. Not yet. It was too early. He pulled up a browser and stared at the blank search bar at the top, begging the question _what am I going to do for three hours?_

His fingers drummed against the keyboard of his laptop as he thought for a moment. He had nothing he really wanted to do on the internet, but the internet was the best way to waste time. Levi looked around the room again as though it would help him think of something. He could play a browser game, but more often than never they enraged him. He could watch something on YouTube, but he would get bored of the idiotic videos sooner or later. 

Letting out a sigh, Levi half-shut his laptop when his eyes caught on something. His phone. But not just his phone; the cellphone charm Hanji had bought for him at the airport; the one that said ‘Hella Fab’ in blue rhinestones that for whatever reason he actually put on his phone. Hanji had weird tastes— _Hanji had weird tastes._

Opening his laptop fully again, his fingers danced across the keyboard and typed within the search bar the website Levi had once mentally decided to stay away from.

_Alright… let’s see what’s so great about Tumblr, shall we?_

The site popped up with a “log in” and “sign up” box in the middle with someone’s beautiful artwork as the background. He did end up making an account and found himself lost in a world of fandoms, and to his surprise, ended up wasting a good four hours just reblogging stupid things that he found funny.

Glancing at the time (5:32), Levi nearly threw his laptop onto the floor. He turned it off by the button and nearly laughed—laughed because the last post he reblogged was a picture that said “when I press the power button down instead of turning my computer off the right way I feel like I’m drowning it”.

He left the device on his coffee table and turned into the kitchen. It was time to cook, and then Eren would be over in two and a half hours. He had no more time to waste.

-

“Bonjour ma soeur, Mikasa”

Mikasa looked up from reading the large paperback book she held in her hands. “Um… No, don’t French at me.”

“But I need to practice.” Eren whined, flopping down beside her on her bed. He pushed her shoulder with his hands and she gave him an annoyed look. “S-s'il vous plaît!”

“Why practice with me? I didn’t take French last year. I took Spanish.”

“Yeah, I know, and people started calling you “mi casa-su casa” because of it. Please? Just tell me if it sounds alright.”

Mikasa sighed and set her book down after dog-earing the top of the page to mark her place. “Fine.”

“Bonjour mon amour.”

“You sound like a moron.”

“Mikasa…” She arched an eyebrow, amused by herself and Eren went on. “Tu m'as manqué aujourd'hui.”

“Eren how am I supposed to help you if I have no clue what you’re say—”

“Mikasaaaaaa—Est-ce son du tout le Français?”

“Dude I don’t know what you’re saying.”

“Just tell me if it sounds okay! Compris?”

“Um… Omelette du fromage.” Mikasa folded her arms.

Eren just blinked in confusion. “…Why the fuck did you just say cheese omelet?”

“Because, as I told you three times now, I don’t fucking know French. Well other than that, but whatever. Look, you sounded fine. When’s your date?”

“Um…” Eren glanced over to the clock beside Mikasa’s bed. “Soon.”

She picked her book back up and opened it back up to the page she had marked. “I don’t see why you need to speak French to him anyway, but you sounded fine okay? Go take a shower and try to look decent and clean or whatever.”

“But why did you say cheese omelet?”

“Oh my god, Eren.”

The boy stood. “Okay, okay, I’m going!”

-

Eren: I’m at the red light before your complex so I’ll be there in like 5 minutes

Levi picked his phone up from the counter and smiled at the message.

Levi: Don’t text while you’re driving. I’ll see you when you get here.

Eren didn’t reply and Levi made haste to finish setting up. He placed everything carefully on the table until it looked _right_. Perfect.

He left the table and walked to the door, inhaling the scent that came from his kitchen and pushed down the small dimmer beside the light switch and the lights went down. It wasn’t dark though when Levi turned to admire his handiwork again, he almost sighed because of how cliché the scene looked. Dim lighting, candles on the table, _food_ , a fucking table cloth…

Debating whether or not he should stand outside the door and wait for him, or stay inside and await the knock, he ended up leaning against the door and waiting like that. All he wanted was for Eren to be there. Despite how hard he had worked on setting up their romantic Christmas Eve dinner, he didn’t even really care if neither of them were hungry.

_I want to hold you. I want you in my arms, and I want to kiss you. I want you to kiss me and I want you to tell me you love me and I want to say it back. I want you to be here, Eren. Eren I just want you. I want you to be with me right now._

A knock brought Levi out of his thoughts and he hesitated when reaching for the doorknob. Why did he hesitate? He wasn’t sure. He felt nervous—nervous? Levi, of all people? Pulling the door open, he smiled at his boyfriend all bundled up in that blue coat he’d been wearing when going out with for the past three days. Snowflakes clung on his hair and lashes. Levi invited him in.

After Eren shimmied out of his coat and put it on the rack, he turned to look at what Levi had set up in the small not-quite-a dining room. A table with a cloth taped down to it—Eren would have laughed but he knew Levi must have been entirely too frustrated to deal with it for too long—with a meal that just the sight of it made his stomach growl a bit too loudly. Set on both sides of the table were red candles lit in small jars without lids, giving the perfect glow in the dimly lit apartment.

“You set all this up… for me?” Eren looked to Levi, and the older man only shrugged as though he hadn’t put a lot of thought and work into it. “Levi…”

Taking Eren’s hand in his, Levi lead the teen to the table and pulled his chair out for him. When Eren was seated, Levi walked around the table and sat across from Eren.

“You like baked chicken, don’t you?”

Eren laughed and nodded. His eyes stay locked to Levi’s, green eyes being illuminated by the light of the candles and admiring the shine they gave to the grey-blue of Levi’s.

And finally they had begun to eat. They chatted about small things; what they had done Monday while the other as busy. Eren told Levi he had hung out with Jean, making no mention of the French lesson. That was a surprise. Levi told Eren how the shopping with Erwin and Hanji went and how he saw Armin at the post office. He made no mention to tell Eren about the song information. That, too, was a surprise.

Eren stated several times how delicious everything was and Levi waved it off like it was nothing, like it hadn’t taken him three hours to prepare or the fact that he wanted to shove his fist through the raw chicken and tear it apart with his fingers. Levi wasn’t a big fan of cooking big meals, or cooking at all really—though, if it was for Eren, then he didn’t mind…

They now lay on Levi’s couch in each other’s arms; fingers laced together, just talking. Eren, who lie with his head on Levi’s chest, looked up and leaned forward to press his lips to Levi’s. A small kiss, before he spoke. “You’re so great to me, you know? You didn’t have to do all of this.”

“I did,” Levi replied, his voice smooth, looking into the other’s eyes. “You deserved something nice, after all. I mean… you helped me reconnect with my parents.”

“I only pushed you. You did it by yourself.”

“Eren…” Levi held back a laugh before leaning forward to connect his and Eren’s lips. Against the boy’s lips, he continued. “You’ve actually done a lot more for me… you really don’t understand.”

Releasing Levi’s hands, Eren pushed himself up a bit so that he was now straddling the other. Levi looked up at him and the two of them laughed after swapping serious expressions. It was funny when Eren made a serious face; it looked like he was trying too hard. He crawled forward a bit and lowered his neck and their lips connected once more.

Levi embraced the teen’s neck, his arms hooking around Eren’s neck and pulling him down a bit more. Eren placed his left hand on Levi’s cheek and caressed it with his thumb, only for a minute, before sliding it around the back of Levi’s head and pulling the man up a bit. Leaving one arm around Eren’s neck, Levi let his other fall back to the couch and kept himself propped up by his elbow.

Lips parted finally and tongues met, Levi allowing Eren’s to explore his mouth before their two tongues had a small war and Levi’s won, as always. Now both arms to his side and keeping him propped up, Levi pushed himself up and now the two were sitting up, Eren on Levi’s lap with his hand still holding the back of the man’s head.

And suddenly, Eren was on his back with one hand running up the back of Levi’s head, across his undercut and through his hair, while the other arm draped over the man’s shoulder. The sounds of their lips parting and then being connected mixed with their suddenly heavy breathing was the only sound in Levi’s apartment until he pulled away and looked down at Eren, smiling at the blushing teen beneath him.

“Hang on, I have something for you to hear.” He reached over and opened his laptop; he had turned it on just before Eren had texted him before, with the song he wanted Eren to hear ready. Hitting play, he turned back to see the boy’s expression.

_Oh no, did I get too close?_

_Oh, did I almost see?_

_What’s really on the inside?_

Eren stared up at Levi as the song filled the apartment. He felt his heart pick up as their eyes locked again, the words of the song getting to him.

_All your insecurities,_

_All the dirty laundry,_

_Never made me blink one time._ “I love you Eren—”

Eren’s lips clashed with Levi’s— _unconditional, unconditionally_ —letting out a harsh breath as he pulled Levi down and their chests touched— _I will love you, unconditionally._

 _There is no fear now, let go and just be free_ —Levi’s lips left Eren’s and the boy curled his fingers into the older male’s shirt, keeping him down and their chests together as the black haired male trailed soft kissed down Eren’s neck. _I will love you, unconditionally_

Their hearts pounded and they felt them together, and before he knew it, Eren had whimpered Levi’s name out. Lips pressed to a fresh bruise-like mark low on the teen’s neck, Levi lifted his head to look into Eren’s innocent but lewd eyes. 

“Eren—” 

“I love you too,” He whispered as the song ended. The two sat up, Eren’s fingers still holding the fabric of Levi’s shirt before he stared down at his fingers. He heard Levi’s low chuckle and he knew it was because of the deep blush on his face. As the song started back up, Eren felt Levi’s hands place themselves on his hips and the boy was brought closer to him once more, their bodies pressed tightly together again. 

They stared at each other for a minute as though processing the situation and the obvious mutual wanting. Time to put Eren’s new skill to use. He wanted Levi’s reaction before he forgot how to speak—he was already losing himself in Levi’s eyes. 

“J-Je t'aime…Je t'aime tellement, Levi.” It was only a whisper. 

It was almost a blur, almost as though neither of them knew what was going on or what they were doing before Levi’s shirt was off and Eren’s was just over his head. Bare chests pressed together, cool, soft hands tracing lines down each other’s backs as their lips and tongues danced to the perfect song. 

Levi was deep in thought, at the moment barely paying attention to what was happening with Eren, and realized _this is going to happen tonight. Eren is going to be mine tonight._

They were standing now; Levi led Eren to his bedroom and the boy followed with no hesitation. A weird sense of—what was it, excitement?—rushed over the teen; once they were inside of Levi’s bedroom and when the man turned to face him, Eren nearly knocked him over. He embraced Levi’s waist and quickly pressed their lips together, catching Levi off guard. The man placed his hand on Eren’s shoulders and they moved themselves, slowly sliding around to hook between Eren’s shoulder blades. 

Eren slid one hand up Levi’s back, fingertips grazing the bumps of his spine and making stoic and composed Levi _shudder_ against him. The teen had never known Levi to do something like this and it was cute. Really cute. Eren pulled away and looked down at his boyfriend. Levi was staring at Eren’s bare collarbone, eyes locked in concentration. 

“Levi…?”

Looking up, the man took note of the deep blush painted on Eren’s cheeks. Oh yes, this was definitely happening. Levi had begun backing toward his bed, Eren being pressed against him had no choice other than to move with him and the two fell back against the mattress. 

They got lost in each other’s arms, lost in each other’s touch, against each other’s lips, soft moans erupting from the younger of the two as Levi’s knee parted the boy’s legs to provide the friction Eren didn’t quite expect he wanted. Levi did this purposely though he didn’t know Eren would quite react the way that he did. Pushing himself against Levi’s knee, Eren slid his arms up the man’s back to hold around his neck, pulling the older male closer to him in the process. 

Now, making out and the contact Eren was getting was great and all, but the teen felt the need to get more. He pushed himself up and adjusted so that he straddled Levi, the man now looking up at him whilst adjusting himself as well, one leg up for Eren to go on with rubbing himself against the knee once more. 

Eren moved to his own steady beat, rubbing up on Levi while his lips moved against Levi’s own. The noises of smacking lips combined with the song repeating on Levi’s laptop muffled in the other room was their soundtrack; Levi was quick to move and interrupt the boy’s movements, pushing Eren back by his shoulders. Looking up at the teen straddling him, he could only smile. 

Staring down at Levi for a moment, the look of pure love mixed with want that near clouded those teal eyes was a sight the man never thought he would see. Still smiling, he could feel his heart begin to pound, passion beginning to flood his body and make him feel warm and fuzzy on the inside. 

“Are we going to do this?” Eren whispered after a moment of just staring. He knew what he wanted. He knew what Levi wanted. They craved the same thing, and it was time. 

“Do you want this?” Levi was obligated to ask even though he already knew. Eren nodded and Levi slid his hands down the teen’s body, caressing his hips with soft cool fingers that linger only a moment before he crawled out from beneath Eren and up toward his pillows. Eren followed on all fours, his face a bright red that he was almost thankful Levi couldn’t see in the dim light of his bedroom. 

Levi took a moment to dig through the nightstand placed beside his bed, pausing after he found what he was looking for and hesitated before letting out a short, humorless laugh. “Oi…” 

Crawling up beside his boyfriend, Eren draped his arms around the man’s shoulders and placed many gentle kisses down along the man’s jaw. Levi placed one arm around the teen, Eren looking up as he did so and taking note of the small bottle in Levi’s hand. Levi placed it on the top of the nightstand and then reached back into the drawer for something else. 

“...What’s that?” Eren mumbled against the curve of Levi’s jaw while the man traced circles along the teen’s bare back. 

“Preparation…” 

Of course Eren didn’t need to ask anymore. Closing his eyes he went back to placing kisses on Levi’s jaw when he felt the man shift and move out of his grip. Concerned he had done something wrong, Eren opened his eyes to see what Levi was up to now and flinched when he saw Levi finish stripping. He sat back on his ass and pulls his legs in front of him, arms over his lap as to hide the now-growing bulge, seeing as he already discarded his shirt back in the other room. He watched, wide green eyes clouded with pure want as the man before him slid his jeans down his legs. 

Being the stupid-ass teenager Eren was, he stared at a particular area and spouted out “I didn’t know you were the boxers type…” which only added on the embarrassment to his blush. Levi looked at him for a moment, eyes saying _did you really_ before he snorted and proceeded to strip. And now, Eren was speechless and on the verge of drooling at the sight before him. 

Levi was the definition of perfection and beauty. Chiseled perfection as though carved in pale marble by a god; lean and muscled, and the smirk he had was just icing on the metaphorical cake that Eren would like to take a big bite out of. His eyes lingered on Levi’s. 

“Your turn.” 

Now Eren was mildly self-conscious. Was his body good enough? Wait… Levi had seen it before. Kind of. Back in August, over a video call on Skype, Eren recalled. Did that really count? The teen began to fidget with his belt, the buckle fucking with him and his hands shook to the point that he would much rather grab a knife and cut it off. Levi’s chuckle was enough to calm him, telling him without any words that Eren had nothing to fret over. 

He let his shoulders relax as he got the belt unbuckled and slid it out of the loops. Dropping it to the floor in front of him, after waiting a second for Levi’s scold that never came, he stood and slowly dropped his pants. He didn’t have time to remove his boxer-briefs before the other man has his arms around his neck, their lips and chests making contact and Levi’s naked hips and all below rolling into Eren’s. 

They were back on the mattress and as gentlemanly as Levi could be, while nearly shaking with lust, he pulled Eren’s underwear down below tanned thighs. The teen panted beneath him, having been taken off guard by the last kiss and stared at Levi’s face, watching the man’s eyes light up at the sight. His face flushing brightly, Eren looked away for a moment, trying to compose himself and not look like a blushing idiot. It didn’t work. The other adjusted himself. 

Levi sat between the teen’s legs now, hoisting them up so he had a better view. Eren blushed deeply at the way Levi’s eyes trailed over his lower body. Then their eyes locked, teal clashing with a cloudy steel blue. Before either could utter a word, a strong urge to kiss the other overtook the two of them and their lips smashed together. Levi’s fingers glossed up from the coverage of the lubricant found their way to the boy’s entrance and Eren shuttered as a finger welcomed itself inside. He let out light squeaks of emotions he didn’t have words for as Levi waited for clearance to push another finger through. 

“Mhm—” Eren whimpered against his lips as though knowing what Levi was thinking. 

The second finger slid inside and Levi was amused when Eren began to rut and squirm down on them. A tongue slid across Eren’s bottom lip and the boy complied, only to bite down when Levi found that spot. Grunting, Levi pulled away from the kiss and watched as the apologetic look in Eren’s eyes hid behind his lashes; eyelids shutting tight while the whimper that came from the brunette was far too precious for Levi to handle. 

Eren leaned forward, trembling into the next kiss Levi planted onto his lips, only to have his lip nipped at as revenge for biting Levi’s tongue. Not that he minded. Levi pulled his fingers out and Eren let out a deep content sigh as he watched his boyfriend wiggle his fingers around a bit. It would have been amusing if not for the lust both of them felt, bold letters in their fields of view telling them it was time to get the show on the road. Honestly Eren wasn’t nervous. Not since Levi had stripped down. There was nothing to be nervous about. He loved Levi, and this was happening. 

The boy was so deep in thought that he hadn’t noticed Levi putting on the condom or getting a generous amount of the lube in his palm that was soon smoothly applied to his cock. Obviously now was not the time to ask if Eren really wanted this—it was clear he did at this point—after the prep and all the kissing that had been done. But Levi was still inclined to ask. “Are you sure you—” He paused as Eren’s eyes locked with his once more. “Are you ready?” He asked instead. 

Even though he wasn’t nervous, Eren hesitated. Why had he hesitated? He wasn’t quite sure why himself, but perhaps it was because the man holding his legs up was perfect and beautiful and erotic and knew what the fuck he was doing while Eren was about three months away from eighteen and was still quite a virgin. 

“Yes.” His voice was shaking, though just slightly.

Levi’s lips connected to his, gentle and soft as he adjusted and moved forward. He still held Eren’s legs and as the boy draped his arms around Levi’s neck— 

“—Nnnghh!” Eren gasped lightly as Levi pushed into him. It was so sudden. 

“It’s okay,” Levi’s voice was smooth and calm, far gentler than Eren had ever heard in his life. “I’ll go slowly, okay…? Eren?” 

With shaking hands curled into fists at the nape of Levi’s neck, the boy pulled Levi down so their torsos touched. “Yeah—nnnhg!—Levi—!” He was barely capable of making the words as Levi made thrusts that weren’t as slow as he promised. 

Eren was warm inside and Levi’s face flushed at the realization that it was actually happening. He shut his eyes, arms trembling slightly while holding the teen’s legs, smiling against the other’s lips as his hips pushed against Eren. Shaking legs found themselves hooking around the man’s waist and Levi released his hold on them, sliding his palms down Eren’s thighs and then gripping onto the teen’s hips. 

Moans that escaped Eren’s lips were the soundtrack to Levi’s movements and his noises from the pleasure fused with those of his boyfriend. One arm dropped from around the older male’s neck and trembled to take hold of one clamped to his hip. As their fingers locked and Eren let out a considerably loud moan against Levi’s lips, the man shivered lustfully at the noise and sent a thrust that, as his fingers had done before, hit Eren’s prostate in just the right way. 

“L—Levi!” He gasped, his back arching and their bare chest crashing into each other. Eren dug his face into the curve of the black haired man’s neck, his chin pressing against Levi’s collarbone as another thrust occurred, then another and another and another. 

Levi couldn’t respond with words; he pressed his lips to the boys shoulder and took in his scent—once completely occupied by the scent of Dove soap and watermelon shampoo, now he just smelled like Levi and Levi smelled like him—before sinking his teeth into Eren’s shoulder. Enjoying the sound of an exasperated gasp from the teen, Levi thrust again and slid his other arm around Eren’s waist; at this point the boy practically hung by his arms and legs, clinging to Levi as though letting go would be the worst thing ever (which, yeah, it could have been.) 

Eren whined and moaned nearly incoherent words against Levi’s neck while the man came close to his finish. “Levi… L-Leeevii~! _Nnnngghh_ —” 

“E-Eren—” Levi cut himself off, his own moan mixing with Eren’s loud-as-fuck gasp that made Levi tremble—tremble at the thought that Eren, that this fucking kid was getting so much pleasure from Levi’s actions… “We’re going to come together… alright? Wait a sec—” 

This time it was Eren who cut him off with a sharp whine from the last thrust that left Levi wordless and nearly breathless. Laying Eren flat onto the mattress once more, he sat up just slightly so he could see the beautiful face of his boyfriend before kissing soft, warm lips once more. Eren’s body shook as he took Levi’s dick in the last final thrusts. 

“L-Le-Lev—aaahh~!—Levi!” Eren panted between gasps before reaching his climax. He squeezed Levi’s hand—the man now moaning out the boy’s name in response—and released; panting hard through his orgasm (and cringing at the realization that it had landed on Levi) and shaking against the man as Levi did the same. As Levi pulled out, he let out a shaky breath. 

The twitch at the corners of Levi’s mouth indicated he was about to smile, but when looking down to see the mess Eren made on him, he started _laughing_. Eren was concerned he had broken him somehow until the other male uneasily moved to the side of his bed to toss the used condom into the small trash basket. 

“What’s so… funny?” The boy wasn’t panting as much now. 

“Nothing… you’re adorable.” Levi laid beside Eren now and the teen cuddled up against him. As Levi wrapped his arm around the boy and exhaled, he grimaced at the gross sticky feeling covering his midriff. “Ugh… I need to shower. So do you.” 

“But your bed is so comfortable…” Eren murmured against Levi’s neck, the salt taste of his flesh lingering on the boy’s tongue. “Can’t it... wait until tomorrow?” 

“Eren…” Levi warned, forcing himself to sit up. Eren whimpered and did the same. “Come on. Let’s take one together; get it over with and then we can go to sleep—oh hey. Look like you’ll be spending the night. It’s almost tomorrow.” 

The teen glanced at Levi’s alarm clock. 11:58 P.M. Right on the nose of tomorrow. 

“Yeah… looks like it.” Eren half-laughed. 

Once they were both up from the bed, Levi led Eren toward the bathroom and turned the light on. He reached past the shower curtain to turn the hot water on and hummed gratefully as the steaming water poured from his showerhead, gracing his forearm before he pulled it back to push the shower curtain to the side. He stepped back a moment to grab towels but before Levi could go anywhere, Eren had his arms wrapped around the man’s waist, smiling sweetly down at him. 

Levi quirked an eyebrow, asking an unanswered question as Eren glanced behind him back into Levi’s bedroom—glancing at the alarm clock, it was now midnight. With a deep content sigh, he looked back at the black haired male and leaned down to kiss him. “Merry Christmas, Levi,” Their lips barely touched before Eren spoke again. “And happy birthday.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I can only write smut on rainy days. Was it worth the wait? Nah.
> 
> 25 chapters of sHIT C:


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which gay boyfriends are sarcastic assholes to each other on Christmas, Petra throws up, and it's too late for a McDonald's hash-brown. (The summary of someone so physically exhausted that they can't even make it look physically attractive)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter is short and I didn't put all the shit i wanted in it because I have no excuses, I'm just lazy and didn't feel like writing it all. So, woo! Like, 4 chapters left. One is gonna be somewhat dramatic (it involved Hanji and Jearmin, but not in the same situation), one is gonna be really fluffy (oiyeh, give it up for the MikaAni), one will have smut (which will take me 4 years to write, so be prepared.) and... then the final chapter. probably. Depending on how I feel will be the order. Okay well... enjoy i guess.

“Levi, Levi wake up, Leeeeeeeeviiii, wake uuuuuuup,” Eren shook the sleeping man beside him. “Wake up, wake up, Levi it’s Christmas, wake up!”

The black haired male didn’t comply, only rolling onto his other side so his back would face the teen and he groaned. “…What fucking time is it?” He asked in a voice that Eren was positive shouldn’t sound so sexy if the man had just woken up.

Eren didn’t even have to glance at the clock. He began to shake Levi again, forcing the sleepy man onto his back. “It’s nine fourty one. I made you coffee—”

“You don’t know how I like my coffee.” Levi threw an arm over his face, hiding his eyes beneath where his elbow bent.

Shifting, Eren crawled over Levi and curled up against him, staring straight at the man’s face as he pushed Levi’s arm away from his eyes. They were both open, barely, and through his lashes he was glaring at Eren. The boy smiled sheepishly. “I had Petra make it.”

Levi hesitated. “Are you telling me you went over to her fucking apartment… knocked on the door… _woke_ her _up_ … and had her make me coffee? Damn, Eren, you want me up that badly?”

Now Eren returned the glare. “I went down to get your gifts from my car because I didn’t get the chance to bring them up last night, and she was in the lobby checking the little mail slot thingies. We rode the elevator together and she asked if you were up yet and that led into her making coffee.”

“Ah.” Levi smirked. “So you’re _not_ a greedy little shit.”

“Your coffee is gonna get cold if you keep lounging around like a lazy ass.” Eren sighed.

Sitting up, Levi stretched his arms out in front of him and arched his back, curving and looking almost cat-like as he did so. “Hey, it’s my birthday too. I’m allowed to be lazy on my birthday.”

“Leeevii pleeease,”

As the man sighed, he glanced toward Eren and nodded. “Bring me my coffee and gifts and I’ll get yours while you’re doing that.”

Eren jumped up excitedly and without a word he ran out of Levi’s bedroom to retrieve a mug of coffee and three rectangular box-shaped gifts, two of which were wrapped poorly. Levi got out of bed and snickered for a moment, seeing he had only managed to put on a pair of boxers before he passed out beside Eren after their shower. He strode over to his bag and pulled the two tickets out from its front pocket, still flat and new as the day he purchased them, and walked back over to his bed to sit before Eren got back in the room.

Once Eren entered, Levi couldn’t hold back the laugh pointed toward the Santa hat now perched on Eren’s head. The teen smiled and sat across from Levi on the bed, handing him his mug of coffee and waiting patiently for Levi to finish.

“You got me three?” He said between drinks, glancing at the three items wrapped (two of which were poorly done) between he and Eren. Then he added, “Did Mikasa have to help you wrap them?”

Eren’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment and he folded his arms. “Shut up. I’ve never been good at wrapping. My mom and Mikasa always did it anyway… finish your coffee and open them.”

Levi slowly complied, taking small, slow sips just to piss his boyfriend off. And it worked. Finally, he finished the last bit and placed the empty mug on his nightstand. “I’m going first, because I want the look on your face when I give you yours to last forever.” Eren nodded and Levi went for the first gift. He smiled as he read over the title of the short story, which made Eren smile, though Levi didn’t say anything until the second and third gifts were unwrapped. “Aw.”

“Yeah, well…” The teen began. “I know how much you like that show on BBC, so I thought something Sherlock-y would be a good choice.” Levi nodded, eyes showing he was seemingly curious as to where Eren found the books. “Armin and I were talking a few weeks ago and he was like… well he didn’t know what to get for Jean. And he said Jean and I were alike and so he wanted to know if _I_ could picture anything Jean would like. And after we talked for a while he asked what I got for you and I freaked out because _oh shit_ Christmas is in three weeks and even after the Black Friday sales I still hadn’t found you anything—”

“Wonderful,” Levi snorted. “My boyfriend is a last minute gift shopper.”

“No, no—shut up. Anyway, he asked what kind of stuff you liked and I told him that you liked that show on BBC—”

“Sherlock.”

“—yeah, and then I remembered you liked to read and—”

“Where did you manage to find these, Eren?” Levi interrupted, stacking the books in chronological order by which was written first on his lap. “They’re pretty rare.”

“Oh! Yeah; Armin’s grandpa works at this antique shop-place-thing, he owns it actually. Cool right? Anyways, Armin took me there and his grandpa showed me the books, and right away I thought you’d love them. Or like them at least. Do… do you like them?”

Placing the stack beside him now, Levi cupped Eren’s face in his hands and kissed the boy with coffee breath. He pulled away and nodded, smiling. “Yes. I do. Thank you Eren.”

“Merry birthday,” Eren smiled, his cheeks flushing again. Then his eyes asked the unspoken question and he began to bounce excitedly.

Levi reached out from behind him where he had placed the tickets and held them out to the boy. “Yeah, and Happy Christmas.”

Eren took the two tickets and scanned them. He was confused for a moment, having to look over at the words across them but then—“Levi… are… are we… Are you… taking me to—”

“Don’t hurt yourself, Eren.” Levi teased. “What are you asking me now, hm?”

“You’re…” Eren clutched the tickets closely in his hand and his eyes began to water, tears forming in the corners of his eyes. “…gonna take me to France?”

The older man smirked and shrugged. “If that’s what the tickets tell you then I suppose it’s the only logical—”

He was cut off by the teen mashing their lips together and arms being thrown across his shoulders and around his neck. It was unexpected to say the least, as was Eren pushing his chest against Levi’s bare torso, and also when the younger male pushes his tongue through tired lips and thanked Levi for the gift not with words, but with his mouth all the same.

Eren could admit to himself that he wasn’t the best kisser if he had to lead the action, but in this moment he had all the confidence in the world and—

Levi chuckled against the boy’s mouth and spoke against the soft lips that were pressed against his. “I assume that means you like what I got you?”

With a slight nod, Eren pulled and pulled his arms back from around Levi’s neck. He admired the tickets he held in his hand and let out a deep, happy sigh. “I can’t even believe this right now… You’re taking me to fucking France… How long were you planning this?”

“Mmm,” Levi mused, trying to remember when Hanji had brought the idea up in the first place. “Back in the beginning of November is when the idea first came up. I bought the tickets when I arrived at the airport on Saturday, though.”

“Man…” Eren pulled his knees up to his chest and let out another sigh. “Those books are nothing compared to what you got me… I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry at all, you shit,” Levi hissed though Eren could sense the playfulness and lovingness in his voice. “I love them. I love you. You’re great. Thank you.”

“Yeah, yeah…” The teen grinned. “Oh, I told you last night before we showered but happy birthday.”

Levi cringed. “Last night? Hm… I must have been out of it after we had sex then, I don’t remember hearing you say that.” Eren snorted and Levi went on. “How do you even know?”

“Your mom told me.”

“Ah.” With that, Levi got off of the bed and made his way toward the closet to get clothes to change into. “So you got dressed before you went to your car, hm?”

“No, Levi,” Eren turned now, sitting at the foot of the bed with his legs off the side. “I totally walked through the hall, the lobby, outside in the freezing ass snow, and back up in the elevator bare ass naked for all to see. Ask Petra about it.” Sarcasm. What a little fuck.

The black haired male smirked at Eren’s attempt at sass. “If it was so cold I assume you didn’t have your best to show. Then there’s nothing to ask Petra about, unless for some reason you rubbed one out in the eleva—”

“Okay I get it you can stop.”

“Don’t sass me then, shithead,” Levi turned his back to Eren again, pulling a pair of neatly folded dark jeans from the shelf beneath his shirt and coats and pulling them on, followed by a long-sleeved shirt, a dull blue, washed-too-many-times shirt.

He didn’t hear Eren move from the bed or get up or walk up behind him, and when strong and tanned arms hugged him from behind, hands clasped together against his torso, he nearly jumped. Levi felt Eren’s soft lips press to the back of his neck and slowly work their way up just beneath his ear. He could only smirk. “Oi, Eren… I just got dressed. You already want me back out of my clothes?”

Eren paused, leaving his lips where they were for a moment before pulling away from the spot beneath Levi’s ear and exhaled, his warm breath tickling the back of Levi’s neck. “I was trying to be cute.”

“You’re always cute. What time is it?”

The teen looked over his shoulder at the alarm clock sitting beside Levi’s bed. “Ten-o-six.”

As much as Levi loved the feel of Eren’s warm arms wrapped around him, there were things that needed to be done. One of those things being: get Eren home and have the little shit get permission by his father to go to France. That shouldn’t be too hard, right? _Ha ha… ha._

“We should get going. You need to be getting home.”

“I drove here,” Eren reminded him, placing his chin on the shorter man’s shoulder.

“Yeah, I know, but how are you going to be able to talk Grisha into letting you go to France with me for a week without me?”

Eren cringed. He had to admit, the thought of confronting his father, even though they were _somewhat_ back to how they were when Eren came out, about going to France, of all places, with his boyfriend, of all people, probably wouldn’t go as well as the fairytale scenario he tried to work out in his head.

“So, what, you’re gonna hang out and then I have to drive you home?”

Levi blinked, looking the same as he always did on the outside, but couldn’t help but be offended a bit on the inside. “Well fine, I’ll take my own damn c—”

“I didn’t mean it what way!” Eren sputtered, realizing his error. A nervous laugh attempted to fix the now awkward atmosphere in the room.

“Then yes, you will be driving me home. Hey…” Levi paused, pushing Eren’s arms off of him and stepping away from the boy’s hold, walking toward his bedroom door. “Did you touch my cereal?”

Now the laugh was full and Eren even snorted which made Levi break out his rare(-unless-you’re-Eren) smiles. “No, no, I didn’t…”

“Alright, then I’ll buy you breakfast before we go to your house. Hurry the fuck up; McDonalds stops serving breakfast at ten thirty.”

The two put on their shoes and jackets on, Eren careful when placing the tickets in his coat pocket. He now waited for Levi at the door whilst the black haired man mumbled angrily to himself about how he had left his fucking laptop on to play that song. He was, however, pleasantly surprised to see his kitchen and dining room cleaned.

“When the fuck—Eren?”

“Heh, yeah…” Back at the door, Eren played with the zipper on his jacket, a smile casually painting his lips. “When Petra was making you coffee, I decided to clean up a bit. She helped me a little, but I wiped the table down and put everything away. So.”

“You are the most pleasant thing to be around sometimes, I swear,” Levi hummed under his breath after swiping his key from its usual place on his coffee table and shoving it into the pocket of his jeans. “It’s ten twelve. If we hurry, we can make it to McDonalds. Got your shit?” Eren nodded. “Alright, let’s go.”

Eren was the first one out and, once again, he had to wait for Levi. Not long though, as all the man needed to do was lock his door. Turning, he faced Eren’s back while the teen made his way over to Petra’s door. Levi wasn’t about to tell him not to knock on the door; he wanted to wish the ginger a Merry Christmas and thank her for the coffee as it were.

Neither he nor Eren were surprised when Auruo opened the door after a few knocks. His expression, however, seemed uneasy.

“What’s wrong?” Levi asked, almost too quickly, before Eren could even blink.

“Petra,” Auruo managed in a short breath of exhaustion, though not even getting to the rest of the sentence before a protective look clouded Levi’s eyes.

“What about her?”

“She’s… She’s been throwing up for ten minu—”

Levi shoved passed him and headed for Petra’s bathroom. “Petra? Petra, wh—”

The door clicked, now locked, before Levi could open it. Now, he wasn’t one for germs, but Petra was one of his closest (and only) friends. He wanted to take care of her. Even if she had the flu or some shit like that. The sounds of her heaving from the other side of the door disgusted him. Not because it was nasty (which it was), but because it was _Petra_ and that made him sick to his stomach… The thought of her having t—

“—s’not food poisoning you idiot,” Auruo mumbled from behind him. Levi turned, seeing Eren and Auruo walking toward him. Auruo was talking to Eren.

“Well I’d hope not,” Levi added quickly but neither seemed to hear him.

“Flu?” Eren offered. “I mean, it is winter—”

“She’s not _sick_ you little halfwit,” Auruo placed the palm of his hand over his face and with a sigh, he went on. “It’s… morning sickness.”

“Morning sickness—wait,”

“You bet your fucking ass ‘wait’,” Levi’s tone was harsh and angry, and he intended it this time. “Morning sickness? Are you fucking telling me—”

“Levi,” Eren’s eyes darted toward him nervously, though Levi ignored him.

“—Are you _fucking_ telling me that Petra is—”

The door behind him opened; the petite ginger standing in the doorway with her hair clipped out of her face and drawn into a low ponytail (her hair was just long enough for it). “Pregnant. Yes.”

Levi turned quickly, now staring at his friend. Other than the different hair style she was showing off, there was no sign anything about her had changed. She didn’t look… pregnant. And she didn’t look like she had just been puking either, so there was that. Maybe he heard her wrong? Maybe there was some new virus going around named something that just _sounded_ like preg—

“You guys are always the first to find out our secrets, it seems,” Her voice was cheerful and sweet as always, despite what she had just been going through. “Oh—merry Chri—”

“Yeah, no, hold on,” Levi turned back to Auruo. “You?”

Auruo blinked. “No. Santa Clause.”

Levi was really angry. Not because he was jealous. Not because he still harbored feelings for the girl. It was because Petra, sweet little ginger Petra, a girl he thought of as a sister, a girl he cared very much for, was now going to be put through a bunch of painful and emotional shit, including hormonal rushes that’ll make her randomly cry or want to kill a bitch, and contractions, and fucking _labor_ , and all because that tall, tongue-biting motherfucker couldn’t keep it in his fucking pants.

He would’ve punched the bastard if it weren’t for Eren’s voice calming him almost instantly. “Congrats, oh crap, that’s wonderful.” Levi’s gaze shot to his boyfriend who was smiling at Petra. Levi exhaled when Eren’s turquoise orbs locked on him.

“Yeah… wonderful.” He looked over his shoulder at Petra and gave her one of his rare smiles. If she was happy, then he was going to be happy for her. Friends do that. Yeah. “I’m guessing you just found out?”

“This morning,” Auruo answered.

Petra let out a nervous hum that couldn’t quite be counted as a laugh. “It was actually right after I got back from getting the mail and meeting up with you, Eren.”

Unintentionally, Levi blacked out of the conversation, nodding every so often as though he was paying attention. He was now deep in thought. _So Petra is pregnant. I guess she is growing up. Damn. We’re all getting so old. And Erwin is twenty-five now… Holy shit I turned twenty-four today. Fuck. Eren is what, seventeen? Christ, by the time he’s twenty-three I’ll be thirty. Then by the time he’s thirty-three I’ll be fourty. Damn… wait. Why am I thinking so far ahead?_

He found himself staring at Eren now, fading in and out of his thoughts at the teen’s voice. Then he returned into his own mind. _Yeah. Alright… I can see myself being with this little fucker for a while. Weird. Weird? I don’t know. I wonder how long it’ll be until he’s tired of me, or sick of my bullshit._ Eren’s green eyes found Levi’s blue ones and the smile that light up Levi’s world threw him into a part of his own thoughts he’d never heard before.

_Marry me, Eren._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have school starting up tomorrow so idk how fast the next update will be. You know, considering this one was so fucking fast like omg. (I really am tired, you guys don't even understand.)


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *two weeks late, sweats nervously*
> 
> on a side note, Armin is totally me on Christmas.

“Merry Christmas!” Armin sang, opening the door for his boyfriend who had just arrived.

Snowflakes clung to Jean’s hair and eyelashes and his jacket was damp. He stared down at Armin with a sleepy look in his eyes. He had Armin’s gift in hand, enveloped in white and gold wrapping. “You know I don’t get up this early for just anybody.”

“It’s ten thirty.” The blond grabbed Jean’s gloved hand and pulled him into the house. Shutting the door behind him, he brought Jean to the couch and told him to sit. When Jean did, Armin rushed over to the fake tree (which was plugged in, lighting up Armin’s small living room more than the ceiling fan light did) and picked up an enveloped card, and a small, rectangular box wrapped in red and white Christmas wrapping-paper.

“Ten thirty is fucking early on Christmas,” yawned the other, drumming his fingers against Armin’s gift. Looking at Armin, he furrowed his brows in annoyance. “Dude, you’re not even dressed.”

“I am,” Armin turned, holding Jean’s gift securely against his chest. “Pajamas are still clothes.” The blond strode toward him, modeling black pajama pants with _oh so manly looking_ pale gray stars dotting them. Along with a white t-shirt and the scarf Armin had thrown on earlier for good measure, you could tell he hadn’t been up too long. Either that or he gave no fucks.

As Armin sat beside Jean, he crossed his legs on the couch whilst sitting with this back to the arm, and smiled. He had called Jean at nine thirty telling him to “get your butt over to my house pronto, I want to give you your gift,” to which the taller teen had replied with a disgruntled, tired moan and actually got the fuck out of bed.

“Here,” With his arm extended out toward his boyfriend, Armin waited for Jean to take the gift.

And Jean took it, eyeing Armin curiously before unwrapping his gift. His eyes lit up and he smiled so wide that Armin could see those beautifully perfect teeth (swoon). In his hands, a brand new iPod touch. “No fuckin’ way!”

“Yeaaah,” Armin hummed, trying not to sound too proud of himself and failing terribly. “I remembered how upset you were when the other one broke… I figured since it broke at my birthday party it was only fair I get you another.”

“Armin you didn’t have to do th—”

“Shut up, I’m not done.” He gave Jean the card now. Jean opened it and read the words before a smaller credit-card shaped thing fell from the card. He looked as though he were about to tackle Armin. “Fucking iTunes…”

Armin stifled a laugh. “Well you can’t have an iPod without music. Did you read the card?”

Jean’s eyes went back to the card, looking over each word with care, his chest fluttering slightly. “‘ _Merry Christmas, my love, in which I hope the snow cools down the frustrating bullshit you go through by being around me each day, and the hot chocolate warms you up when I give you the cold shoulder. In which, the food you eat is enough to fill your belly when I cannot fill your heart, and the mistletoe makes up for all the times I didn’t put my lips to yours. Armin.’_ You—”

“I suck at romantic shit,” This time Armin did laugh. “But yeah. Merry Christmas.”

Jean could cry right now. He may or may not have been tearing up (he totally was, just saying). Finally, he shoved Armin’s gift into his hands and hid his face in his own. “Christ, Armin, my gift is shit compared to this. You don’t understand.”

Armin smiled. “Shut up,” and tore the paper off within five seconds. He began bouncing on the couch like an excited child, staring at the game in hand. “JEEEEEEEEEEEEAN! OH MY GOD.”

“I’m sorry, I know it’s shitty, I—”

“NO SHUT THE FUCK UP,” Armin was nearly screeching. “POKEMON MOTHER FUCKING X, JEAN. POKEMON. MOTHER. FUCKING. X.”

An amused smile worked its way onto Jean’s face as Armin flailed about with the new game in his hands. “I take it you liked it?”

“YOU DON’T EVEN FUCKING KNOW. OH MY GOD, JEAN, I’VE WANTED THIS GAME SINCE IT CAME OUT IN OCTOBER HOLY FUCK.”

“I’ve never seen you get so excited, damn.” Jean couldn’t help but laugh at his boyfriend. Armin, of all people, getting worked up and overly excited for a pretty new game, regardless of how great it’s said to be, was just so fucking entertaining. And kind of adorable. “So? You like it then?”

Armin took a moment to compose himself, taking in a deep breath and letting it out shortly after. He stared down at the game-box in his hands for another second before looking at Jean. “Yes. Thank you.” He let out another breath, now composed and calm though on the inside he’s just dying to play the damn thing.

“No problem.” Was Jean’s short response as he stared down at his own gift. He didn’t want to admit it, but he was getting more worked up than he should over an iPod. Even if his old one did have to do with—

A gentle hand placed itself upon Jean’s shoulder and the golden eyes landed on it, trailing down, the wrist and following up Armin’s arm to the younger teen’s shoulder. Jean stared at him, eyebrows knitted upward in slight confusion. Then he realized his face was warm and he knew what Armin was going to say.

“I’m not crying,” He hissed under his breath just as Armin said the words: “You’re crying.”

Jean looked away quickly, rubbing the sleeve of his jacket over his wet eyes. “I’m not.”

“You are.” Armin frowned. “What’s the matter? Is it the gift—”

“Yes,” Jean’s response was quick and hushed.

The blond teen flinched slightly, now frowning at his boyfriend. “I thought you liked it… I’m sorr—”

“No, shut up Armin… I do like it.”

“Then why…?”

They sat in silence for a moment, only the sounds of the couch cushions being pushed down by legs as the two shifted to fill the dull quiet in the room.

Finally, Jean spoke. “Okay, let’s say… you’re moving in a week…” He glanced at Armin only to receive a confused blink. “You’re hanging out with Eren at his house and you don’t have your jacket for some reason. He lets you borrow his for the night because it’s cold as fuck outside and he doesn’t want you to freeze on the way home—”

“What are you—”

“—and you’re like ‘oh, sure, okay.’ And you promise to give it back the next day when you see him. So you take it. Then you go home and you help your family pack the rest of the shit up and you’re gonna go check out the new house in the new town because you didn’t see it before. Okay, so you go and you don’t see Eren all that day but you keep his jacket on because it’s warm and you appreciate that he let you borrow it.”

“Jean I don’t see—”

“Let me finish,” Jean’s voice was hushed again. “So then you get back to your house and your mom says ‘go give Marc’—er… ‘go give Eren his jacket back.’ So you put yours on and then you have Eren’s with you and you f… and you fuckin go to his house to be greeted by fucking firemen and a burning house. Eren’s dad is sitting at the ambulance getting his breathing and lungs checked and you start to fucking panic. And—” Jean began to shake.

“Jean? J—”

“—and you go, Mr. Bodt, where’s Marco? What happened? Mr. Bodt!’ and then he just looks at you with the saddest, most heart wrenching look on his face and he doesn’t fucking tell you where Marco is because he knows that you _know_ and you just—and your best friend is fucking dead and all you have to remember him by is that fucking iPod that he let you borrow and—”

“Jean!” Armin’s voice brought him out of his reverie finally; the taller teen stared at the blond now, tears sliding down his cheeks as well as welling up in his eyes. “Okay, I… think I got what you’re telling me. Your best friend, Marco? Marco gave you your old iPod. And… there was a fire, and he—”

“You don’t need to say anymore,” Jean huffed under his breath, rubbing his sleeve against his eyes a second time.

The blond hesitated to go on. “Alright… I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to upset you…”

Shaking his head, Jean exhaled and forced a smile. “You didn’t know. And… hey it’s fine. It’s a great gift, really. I love it. Thank you Armin.”

“I’m glad you like it,” Armin paused, watching Jean shift and reach over to the side so he could place his gifts and card on the table. Once he sat back straight, Armin breathed. “I’m sorry.”

Golden eyes locked with cyan. “Huh?”

“I’m not gonna talk about it anymore, but I’m sorry.” With that, Armin pushed up to his knees and placed his palms against Jean’s shoulders, leaning forward and placing a small kiss on the taller boy’s lips. “I love you. And merry Christmas.”

-

With legs crossed Indian-style on Mike’s couch, Hanji sipped on her morning coffee whilst the dirty-blond haired man chirped away on the phone. Her hair was down and her glasses were still in the bedroom; she sat (un)comfortably in her pale yellow silk pajamas. She had to force the smile she had on her face at the moment, her heart aching as thoughts flew through her mind.

_You love her, don’t you?_

Mike always laughed harder when talking to Nanaba, Hanji thought.

Mike always smiled brighter when talking to Nanaba, Hanji saw.

Mike always _everythinged better_ when it came to Nanaba.

“Oh my god,” Mike’s voice brought Hanji from her thoughts. She assumed he was talking to her for a spit second, but saw the phone still pressed against his ear and she let out a sigh. Mike chuckled loudly, doubling over his cup of coffee at whatever seemingly hilarious thing Nanaba happened to say over the phone. “No fucking way.”

 _You definitely do._ Hanji thought, her brown eyes locked on Mike’s every action. _It’s obvious. You make it obvious, Mike._

“Jeez, really?” It was so rare for him to laugh this hard around Hanji at all. And when he did laugh _this_ hard, who was the cause of it? “Nanaba—oh, damn, I can’t breathe. Hold on.”

“Yeah,” Hanji murmured against the rim of her coffee cup. “Hold on.”

Mike paused and turned his head to look over at the brunette. “You say something, Han?”

“No I—” She stopped. What was the point of the little charade? It was evident that Mike had a thing for Nanaba. He told Hanji he’d met the blond back in ninth grade when he transferred. He told Hanji she was funny, and smart, and kind and blah blah fuckidy blah. “Actually yeah. Um… can we talk?”

“Can it wait?” He responded.

Hanji could hear Nanaba’s voice speaking on the line and she wanted to curl into herself. She loved Mike, but she was feeling like a third wheel in her own relationship. Now that hardly seems fair… “No.”

Mike blinked once, a bit confused by Hanji’s stern tone. She rarely ever sounded like this. “Alright…” He put his phone in the other hand. “Nanaba I gotta call you back later… Yeah, you too; Merry Christmas.” He hung up and looked back to the brunette on his couch. “What’s up Han?”

The woman looked down into her now lukewarm coffee before placing the mug on the table and looking at him. Mike blinked. Hanji began. “Are you trying to hide it?”

The man shifted in his seat. “Hide what?”

“How much you like Nanaba.” She didn’t let Mike interrupt. “Because you’re not doing a good job of hiding it. You make it really obvious.”

“She’s my best friend, Han,” Mike explained. “Of course I like her.”

“You know very well what I mean, Mike. You _like_ her. A lot. The entire time I’ve been back, you’ve spent at least an hour a day talking to her on the phone, except for that one night Erwin and you took me out to dinner. Which when we got home, you proceeded to text her until we went to bed. You’ve known her since you were a little ninth grader, right? That’s what you told me, Mike.” Hanji had to take a breath. Her voice was shaking because she knew how this would go. She’d start crying, which was as rare as her stern voice.

“Han?” Mike placed his mug on the table and moved over to sit beside her on the couch. His eyes were filled with concern but she couldn’t look at him. “Are you—”

“I’m not jealous,” She spoke quickly, pulling her knees up to her chest. She knew she was acting like a big baby, reverting back to when she was a teenage girl and going through her first heart break.

“…I was going to ask if you’re okay.” The tall man placed his hand on her shoulder. She still refused to look at him. “Why’re you bringing this up now?”

“Because!” Hanji snapped, jerking her head the other way to look at him. She didn’t mean to shout and her voice was hushed with the next words she spoke. “…she makes you seem so much happier than I do. You laugh harder when she talks to you. You laugh and smile more when _she_ talks to you.”

Mike pulled his hand away from her shoulder and his brows now knit upward, he sighed. “It’s not like that, Zoe.”

That’s when Hanji’s heart snapped. No more Hanji, no more Han, no more unique name that she loved, that made the safe little world in her head sacred. Now she was just _Zoe_ to her most important person. Just Zoe. “Then what is it…” Her voice became dull and she felt it sink into a monotone-like vibe. The name Zoe broke her. It didn’t _fit_ her. It was something she had thrown away long ago.

“She’s my best friend. You know how your closest friend brings out the best in you.” He cringed. That was not what he meant to say. “Let me rephrase that—”

“No, I know what you mean,” Hanji stood up and turned to face him. Her eyes were watering, but she wouldn’t let the tears fall. “She brings out the better Mike. You know what else does that? When you love someone, and you want to be a better version of yourself to show that person that you love them.”

Now Mike stood, a bit slower to rise than the brunette, and stared down at her. “I told you that’s not what I meant.”

“But you don’t deny what I just said about love,” Hanji refused eye contact again, now staring down at her fuzzy boot-like slippers. “Tell me how you feel about her.”

“She’s my friend.” He replied.

“You’re annoyed now, and so you lie. She is your friend,” Hanji deducted, the mathematical and scientific part of her brain working to shield the rest of her from the pain of heartbreak. “But you also have feelings for her. You spent your entire summer break with her, helping her move into her new house, comforting her with that one guy broke up with her, going to the movies with her, every damn day. That’s what you told me,” Finally, she looked back up at him. “While I was in France, what did you do?”

“I went to work.” Now it was Mike refusing to make eye contact. He looked over her head toward the kitchen, his arms crossing over his chest in attempt to seem stronger than he already was.

“On the weekends? Days off? What’d you do for lunch? Dinner?”

His eyes darted back to hers. “Are you accusing me of cheating on you with Nanaba?”

“No.” Hanji smiled softly. “Because I know you’re not that kind of person. That’s why you’re trying so hard to hide your feelings for her. Because you’re a good person and you don’t want to hurt me.”

She was right. Mike wasn’t the type of person to cheat. He was a kind person. He cared for people. And he cared dearly for Hanji. But he also cared deeply for his blonde friend whom was receiving all of his attention. He let out a short breath. “I spent time with her on the weekends. I only had Thanksgiving off… and I spent it with her. She… would often bring me something for lunch because—”

“Because you tend to oversleep and forget to get anything. And you don’t like leaving work for something like food.” Hanji knew.

“Yeah…” He slowly slumped back down to the touch and she sat beside him. “I actually… had to work late because of a case Erwin and I were working on together. We didn’t get it done until ten thirty and after we left, I didn’t get home until eleven. It was too late for me to make anything, and when I checked my phone, Nanaba had called me twice… so she ended up bringing me something from Dairy Queen. She ended up staying until like… one… we were watching TV and I passed out on the couch…” Mike stopped to look at Hanji who was still smiling softly. She understood.

“She’s that kind of person.” Mike went on. “She just… cares. So much.”

“And you love her.”

He didn’t want to answer. He didn’t want to hurt her. But not answering would hurt her more. “…I do.”

-

Levi half expected Eren to be stuffing fries in his mouth by the time they got out of the McDonalds parking lot (they didn’t leave Petra’s until 10:50, so breakfast was no longer an option, sadly) but the teen was entirely too nervous to eat. Levi wasn’t gonna have that, though,

“Eat your damn burger.” His eyes narrowed. “And stop fidgeting so much.”

“Sorry captain perfect,” Eren mumbled, staring down into the bag of fast food. “I’m just scared.”

“I know,” Levi replied. “You shouldn’t be though.”

“What if he says no?” Eren turned his head to look at his boyfriend.

“Then I’ll refund the tickets.” The black haired male shrugged. It was as simple as that, but Eren didn’t take it lightly.

“But you spent a lot of money on—”

Levi cut him off. “You understand the concept of a refund, right?” He received a glare from Eren and stifled a small laugh. “Eren, if he says no, then he says no. I’ll refund the tickets and take you out to a nice restaurant and then take you home and dominate your ass for making me refund the tickets.”

Face flushing, Eren looked out the window. Levi laughed. “You’re not funny.”

“Wasn’t a joke,” Levi hummed, then smiled. “But don’t be scared, alright?”

“How can I not be scared when you’re threatening to domina—”

He received a loud groan from Levi. “You asshole, I meant about your dad saying no. The other thing was a joke—” _Well, kind of._ “—so don’t be fucking scared of either. Eren, do you trust me?”

“Yeah,” The brunet answered honestly.

“Then don’t be scared.”

The rest of the car ride was silent save for the sounds of a crinkling McDonalds bag and the absentminded chewing of fries and a cheeseburger. Levi pulled up into the driveway and when he went to unbuckle his seatbelt, Eren stopped him with a sudden whimper.

“I just realized we had sex last night.”

“Oh, thanks.”

“Not like that,” Green eyes locked wit steel blue and Levi blinked, waiting for Eren to explain. “My dad is gonna ask where I was last night. I didn’t tell him I was spending the night. We had sex. Levi, we had s—”

“I know, I was there.”

“What do I tell him?” Eren whined.

“Eren, he’s not gonna ask if I was up your ass last night, he’s going to ask where the hell you were. He’ll probably assume things, but if he doesn’t ask you don’t have to tell him.” Eren nodded slowly. “I’ll do the talking.”

The two got out of Eren’s car and made their way to the front door. Walking inside, Eren tried to hide behind Levi as they entered. He grabbed the shorter males hand and took the lead, turning into the living room to be greeted by _Home Alone 2_ on the TV and Annie.

“Merry Christmas,” Eren said to the blonde. He didn’t expect her to be over, but relaxed when he saw she was the only one in the living room, save for Eren and Levi.

“Merry Christmas.” Annie replied, eyes not leaving the movie on the screen.

“Where’s Mikasa?” Eren sat on the couch, still holding Levi’s hand, and the shorter male sat beside him.

“She had to pee.”

“Oh.”

Levi watched the two teenagers eyes lock onto the TV, and smiled as Eren laughed. On screen, the two thieves had just slipped on ice whilst running up stairs.

Mikasa returned to the living room with her hair pulled back into a low ponytail, smiling at the sight of her brother. “You’re home.”

“Sorry I didn’t tell you I’d not be home,” Eren apologized, removing his eyes from the TV to look at Mikasa.

She shrugged and sat on the other side of Annie, pulling her legs up to her chest and leaning her head against Annie’s. “S’okay. Dad was worried though, but I told him you had a date.” She glanced over to her brother. “That’s all I said. And he calmed down a bit.”

The four of them watched the rest of the movie, laughing at the funny parts, though leaving Eren to _aw_ at the ending when Kevin reunited with his mother by himself. Then the front door opened and shut, each person on the couch looking toward the opening to the hallway to see Grisha walking in.

“Merry Christmas dad,” Eren called, and at the same time Levi said “Merry Christmas, Mr. Jaeger.”

Grisha paused in his place after shutting the door to look in the living room. “Merry Christmas,” he responded, walking into the room and sitting in the empty reclining chair after removing his snow boots and kicking them under the table to join everyone else’s shoes. “Why didn’t you call to tell me you wouldn’t be home last night?”

“Sorry,” Eren whined. “I was preoccupied.”

Perhaps that wasn’t the right word to use, because before Grisha could respond, Levi tried to fix what Eren may have just ruined. “Sorry sir, that’s my fault. I was distracting him, he was going to though.”

“Yeah, I just forgot.” Eren added.

“How was the date?” Grisha didn’t seem all too pleased with either of their answers or his own new question. Mikasa and Annie could feel the tension start to form an awkward stiffness in the air and they turned back to the TV in attempt to block out Grisha, Eren and Levi’s conversation.

“It was nice,” Eren smiled. “He made me chicken.”

*

Whatever led to Eren and Levi sitting at the kitchen table like children waiting to be punished, they didn’t remember. It was a slip of the tongue, but that’s all they could pin it on before Grisha pulled the chair adjacent to Eren’s out and sat down across from the other two males.

Oh, yes! It was Eren prematurely mentioning France, and Levi staring at him like he was a dumbass, and now the two sit there being stared down by Eren’s father. It didn’t affect Levi as much as it did Eren for obvious reasons.

“What about France now?”

Eren explained about the tickets and Levi explained how he was going to take Eren to France for a New Years trip. Eren fidgeted a lot while Levi spoke, despite how calm and collected Levi and his words were. Grisha seemed to understand and he nodded a few times, seemingly amused by the premise of Levi’s gift, and even said that was kind of him to think of something so wonderful to do for Eren.

And though Eren seemed to relax after Levi and Grisha began to talk about France and the subject of actually going was changed a bit, he still had a bed feeling. He still felt tense and nervous… Grisha hadn’t given a straight answer.

-

“It’s a ‘maybe’,” Levi assured him as he shut the door. Eren looked at him through the closed window and Levi walked around the front of the car to join Eren at the driver side. Eren rolled his window down and Levi stuck his head through the window to plant a kiss on Eren’s lips.

It was a small kiss that lasted a good five seconds before Levi pulled back and waved Eren off with a smile as he turned away toward his apartment. Eren pulled out of the parking lot and began to drive home.

 _It wasn’t a maybe. He didn’t give us an answer. You two talked for an hour and a half about France but he never said whether or not I could go._ Eren sighed outwardly as he came to a red-light. It had begun snowing again, but the flurries were small and not enough were falling down at a fast enough pace for it to stick. Once the light turned green, Eren drove the rest of the way home, mulling over thoughts.

He pulled into his driveway, got out of his car and stepped inside of the house, rubbing his hands together, slightly annoyed at himself for forgetting his mittens and shut the door behind him. He was about to turn into the hall leading to his bedroom, but Grisha called him from the living room. So Eren turned to enter the living room and Grisha patted the spot beside him on the couch.

Eren sat beside his father. “What’s up dad?”

The was a long pause before Grisha answered. “About France…”

Getting ahead of himself as always, Eren smiled widely and got really excited over those two words. “Oh, dad, thank you.” Grisha raised an eyebrow. “Thank you so much I appreciate it, really, you don’t understand. Oh, this is awesome; I’ve never been out of the country—”

“Eren,” Grisha interrupted him. “I didn’t even say anything.”

With a small laugh, Eren nodded. “Oh, sorry. What were you gonna say, dad?”

Grisha looked toward the TV, which was on but muted. His words were hesitant and a bit quiet when coming out. “You’re not going to France.”

-

It was now five thirty in the afternoon and Levi had nothing to do except go on Tumblr and waste time, which he didn’t really want to do. But he did anyway. His laptop sat on his lap and he scrolled down his dashboard, snickering at some posts and scowling at others.

After a while, he went back up to the top of his dash to see he actually had more posts than he expected. A one-fifty added to his original total of two-fifty. He remembered reaching the post limit the day before and rolled his eyes at himself, a bit amused at how he had been so entertained by this for such a long time.

The buzzing of his phone made him tare his eyes away from his laptop. He had remembered that he didn’t bring it out with him today and it’d been on his coffee table since the night before. It buzzed three times then stopped, indicating a text message. He picked it up, expecting it to be Eren, then saw he had eight unread texts, all from Hanji. Along with that, he had three missed calls from the woman.

He blinked through mild confusion and read through the messages.

Hanji 10:58 A.M.: Are you up?

Hanji 11:30 A.M.: Levi?

Hanji 12:45 P.M.: Levi please reply, I really need to talk to you.

Then a call at twelve fifty-two.

Hanji 1:04 P.M.: Are you ignoring me…

Another call at two thirty.

Hanji 2:52 P.M.: Did I do something wrong?

Hanji 3:46 P.M.: Levi please reply or call me back :(

A third call at four o’clock on the dot.

Hanji 4:30 P.M.: If I’m ruining your Christmas I’m sorry, but I really need you right now. Please pick up.

Hanji 5:31 P.M.: Are you still ignoring me?

Levi actually felt a bit guilty for not taking his phone with him even though he wasn’t aware of the reason Hanji “needed to talk to him”. He shut his laptop at a 45 degree angle and slid his thumb across his phone a few times to select Hanji’s contact and call her.

She answered no more than two rings later.

“Sorry, I didn’t have my phone on me today—”

She cut him off with a shaky voice. “Can you come get me, please…?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't even look at me that way.


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi tells Hanji how he met Eren and about their first date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh look, 5000 words of Levi being ooc and in love.

Receiving directions to Mike’s house took more time and effort than actually getting there.

When Levi drove up he had to look at the number on the mailbox to see if it matched his phone. As his phone lit up, he heard the sound of a door shutting, and looking up he saw Hanji trudging through the snow with the bag she had brought with her from France. He watched her walk around to the passenger side and get in, bag in her lap, and without a word.

Earlier when he had called her back, she didn’t give him any details, only telling him that she and Mike broke up and she needed a ride.

“Where do you want me to take you?” He had asked.

“Somewhere with Wi-Fi and coffee.” She had replied with an uneasy laugh.

Levi could have easily taken her to McDonalds and left her there, but he didn’t. The drive back to his apartment was silent, save for the radio’s static. Hanji would occasionally sneak a glance at her black haired friend but then quickly look away if she thought he was going to look back. He never tried.

Once the two finally arrived at the apartment building, Levi carried Hanji’s bag for her because “You look like you’re two seconds away from throwing this thing through a window and I’m going to have to pay for it if you do that”.

Rico gave a second glance as the pair made their way in from the door to the elevator. The look on her face told Levi what she was assuming, and the look he shot back threw her assumption into the deep depths of hell. So she slumped back in her seat and waved him off as she always did and turned to check what time it was to see when she could go the fuck home.

The ride up the elevator was silent.

The walk down the hall to Levi’s apartment was dreadfully silent.

Walking inside said apartment was silent.

Shutting the door behind them was silent. For about three seconds.

From behind her, Levi could see Hanji shaking and it didn’t take him long to come to the conclusion that she was trying to hold back tears.

“Let it out,” He put his hand on her back. That was all she needed.

She threw her face into his shoulder and sobbed. No matter how disgusting this moment was—in Levi’s eyes all he saw was having to double wash his coat to rid it completely of Hanji’s snot and tears—he only reacted by putting one arm fully around her and rubbing her back in attempt to comfort her. The only girl he had ever been around during a break up was Petra, and he was the one breaking up with her. So, he had no idea what the fuck he was doing.

“So what happened?” He asked after Hanji’s cries grew quieter and into uneasy breaths.

“We broke up.” She said with her face still against his shoulder in search of comfort.

“Sit on the couch. I’ll make you some coffee and you give me details because I fucking know you broke up, you told me that already.” He gently pushed Hanji off of him and she took slow strides to just flop down on his couch.

 Hanji whimpered. “Do you have any ice cream?”

“Ice cream is messy and sticky and it is eleven degrees outside, why in God’s name would you want to eat ice cream?” He was in the kitchen near the coffee pot now.

“It’s comfort food.” She wiped her eyes along the sleeve of her coat and let out a shaky breath. “I don’t really want coffee…”

“Good, I really didn’t feel like making any.” Levi turned to the fridge and opened the freezer to see if he had any ice cream. What a surprise! He didn’t. “Yeah, no, I don’t have any ice cream.”

Instead of responding, Hanji just sighed again. And that fucking sigh made Levi want to actually go out and _buy_ her ice cream. “S’okay.”

And the tone in her voice just now made him want to go out and buy her three things of ice cream. If she started crying he’d probably consider hijacking an ice cream truck for her if it was summertime and they were actually around.

Without looking at Hanji as he passed, he opened the door and walked across the hall to Petra’s apartment. He knocked a few times and waited patiently for what seemed like forever (it was only two minutes) before the door opened.

Petra stood there in her fluffy peach bathrobe and her hair dripping wet. She smiled at him. “How many times to I get to count on seeing you today?”

“I’m not sure if you’re finally using sarcasm or if you’re actually happy to see me. Sorry to interrupt you,” She shrugged. “But do you have any ice cream?”

“Uhh…” Petra blinked, confused, and took a step back before turning toward her small kitchen. Levi watched her open the door to the freezer and pull out a tub of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. “This… but like half of it is gone.” She walked back over to him and handed him the icy container. “I didn’t know you liked ice cream.”

“I don’t, but I have sad company who wants some and I don’t feel like going out.”

“Eren?”

“No. Remember the girl that was with Mike and Erwin at Ral’s the other day when Eren and I were on our date?”

“The one sitting by Eren? Yeah.” Petra nodded once. “Why’s she sad?”

“She and her boyfriend broke up. I don’t have details.”

“Oh yes, because you’re _such_ a gossip, Levi.”

He rolled his eyes but graced Petra with the smallest of smiles. “Thanks. See you probably tomorrow. Merry Christmas,” He turned, thinking she was ready to shut the door, and took a step toward his apartment. Her hand on his shoulder stopped him though, and he turned to look back at her. “Hm?”

“I know this is the most awkward way to have a conversation,” She began with a small smile to match his. “In the hallway of an apartment building holding half a tub of ice cream with a girl in her bathrobe, but… I miss you, Levi. You need to visit me some time… just you. It’s not that I don’t like seeing Eren but…”

“I know what you mean.” Levi turned to fully face her now, her arm dropping as he did. “I’ll come over sometime when life isn’t up both of our asses, and we’ll catch up.”

“I’d appreciate that.” Her smile was full now.

“Before I head back in there, I have to ask… do you have any baby names in mind?”

The ginger placed a hand to her belly, now looking down at the still-quite-flat surface her bathrobe covered. “I’m not sure. I think Auruo and I are going to wait to find out the gender before we decide on any names.”

“Ah, alright. Keep me posted. Goodnight, Petra.”

“Goodnight, Levi.”

She watched him turn back to his apartment with the still-opened door once again. Once he entered, she shut her own door.

Levi handed Hanji the half-full container of chocolate chip cookie doughe ice cream and went into his kitchen to retrieve a spoon for her. “Where did you—”

“My neighbor.” He answered. “I swear to god if you get ice cream on my couch, it’ll be the last thing you ever do.” He pulled a spoon from the drawer and returned to her side to give it to her. Then sitting beside her, he watched as she removed the lid and placed it upside-down on his table to keep the condensation from leaving a wet mark. “You wanna tell me what happened now?”

Hanji scooped up a spoonful of ice cream, looking down into the container without a word. She then ate the spoonful followed by another and then another before she finally spoke. “We didn’t have a fight, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“I assumed you didn’t. That still doesn’t tell me what happened.”

Placing the container inside of its lid with the spoon inside, Hanji looked down at her lap and drummed her dingers against her knees. “He loves someone else. It’s as simple as that.” She looked up to make eye contact with the shorter male and sighed again. “I think you know her? Erwin does. Her name is Nanaba.”

“Short blond hair?” Hanji nodded. “Blue eyes?” She nodded again. “Yeah. She’s one of Erwin’s buddies. We’re acquaintances. Go on.”

“She’s like Mike’s best friend of all time. They’re practically inseparable. And… he’s in love with her. It’s really obvious too. He didn’t want to hurt me though, so he kept it quiet until I brought it up…” Hanji’s voice trailed off.

Levi watched Hanji fidget with the strings of the hoodie she wore beneath her coat. He knew she was hurting, but he had absolutely no idea how to comfort her. At all. So he just said the first thing that came to mind.

“How did you and Mike even meet?” He knew she didn’t go the same high school as he and Erwin and the rest of their “clique” (he always _knew_ Mike, but he didn’t really _know_ him), and was generally curious as to how she met the tower of a man he knew as Mike.

Hanji let her hair down, pulling the black hair-tie down to her wrist and shrugging off her winter jacket after. Then she looked at Levi with wary eyes. “You’re not one to ask questions like that.”

“Does that mean you’re not going to tell me?”

The girl sighed but gave Levi a small smile. “I went to the private school up in Sina, so up until graduation I didn’t know any of you. But after I graduated, I started going to the community college. My mom said I could do so much better but I was eighteen, ya know? I wanted to learn a bit before I decided what I actually wanted to _do_.”

Levi nodded. “I get that. You want to be a doctor, don’t you?”

“That or a scientist. At the moment I’m closer to perusing the scientist carrier. Like, human studies. Anyway, I met him in community college. Well, we were introduced by mutual friends and we’d study together a lot.”

“Cute.”

“Yeah I guess… He didn’t ask me to be his girlfriend until like six months _ish_ before I got the idea to go to France. And he helped me get the money for my first ticket because my mom and dad didn’t want to help.” She paused and sighed. “Even then he was crazy about Nanaba but I never saw it.”

Levi placed his hand on the girl’s shoulder again. “At least you guys didn’t blow up at each other. You can stay friends.” He blinked. “You _can_ stay friends, can’t you?”

“Of course we can. You say that like it’s impossible to stay friends with an ex.”

Levi thought about his past relationships. Petra was still one of his closest friends, that was for sure. The guy after her wasn’t really his best decision though, even if he did _learn_ a lot from him. “I know you can. I’m still best friends with my first girlfriend.”

Hanji smiled at that, her eyes sparkling. “That’s nice. How’s she?”

“She lives right across the hall from me.” Levi pulled is arm back and sat against the touch with his arms beside him. He yawned. “Her name is Petra. She’s just as much of a perky ginger now as she was when we were kids.”

“Aw,” Hanji toed off her shoes and brought her feet up onto the couch—Levi ignored it—hugging her knees to her chest and leaning back like he had. “How’d you meet her?”

Levi held back the small laugh he got recalling the memory of punching Nile Dawk in the face back when he was ten-years-old. “I punched a kid in the face for calling her ugly.”

Hanji laughed at that. It was a small laugh, and nothing even close to the laughs she normally had: strong, long, loud, turning into something sounding like _hup hup hup_ if she continued laughing for too long. “That’s adorable.”

The two were silent for a little while. Hanji returned to the ice cream after two minutes went by, her legs crossed beneath the container while she ate the frozen (well, melting now) snack. After a few spoonfuls met her mouth, she paused once more to look at him.

“Hey. How did you meet Eren?”

She watched as Levi’s face contorted into a cringe and he shifted slightly, folding his arms over his chest then putting them back to his sides as though trying to get comfortable. The silence returned and she went back to her ice cream. Levi’s voice caught her off guard when he finally replied and what he said nearly made her choke.

“Well, I almost hit him with my car.”

“You what? Oh my god!” Her surprise was mixed with the loud cackle that her laugh normally was, along with the sounds of her gasping for air after choking on cold cookie dough. “What a great way to meet your future boyfriend; oh god, how do you even?”

Levi waited for her to catch her breath and stop laughing at him. “You done?” She nodded but the twitching of her lips told him otherwise. “He and his friend Armin were leaving the movie theater and he was all pissed off about something and he just ran out in the middle of the street when I was heading back here from meeting Erwin for lunch.”

Placing the container of ice cream back onto its lid, Hanji turned to fully face Levi. “Did you not see him or something?”

He sighed and returned her gaze with an overly bored expression. “No. I had just turned the corner and was passing the theater, and the brat literally ran in front of my car. If I didn’t slam on the breaks when I had, I would have hit him without a doubt.”

“Why would he even run out? Didn’t his mother teach him to look both ways?” Hanji was smiling playfully now and still trying to hold back the laugh that wanted to break through her mouth. The thought of Levi meeting Eren due to something like that just hilarious to her—and she didn’t feel bad about wanting to laugh since nobody got hurt anyway.

“He was mad about something between his friend Armin and the guy he’s dating now or something.” He replied with a one-shoulder shrug. “I don’t really remember. All I recall from that day is nearly hitting him and asking him why in the name of fuck he would just stand there after I almost hit him. He looked like a deer caught in the headlights—huh, almost literally.”

“How cute.” Hanji cooed.

“I guess.” Levi shrugged again.

“Who asked who out?” The girl questioned, leaning in as though it were a secret.

Placing his palm to her face, Levi shoved Hanji away and closed his eyes. “We didn’t start dating until a little while later.”

“That didn’t answer my question.”

“He asked me.”

Hanji blinked. “Really?”

“Yeah.” Levi raised a brow. “I don’t see why that seems to surprise you.”

“No reason. So... Tell me about it.”

If he had to be honest, at this exact moment, he was a bit annoyed with how curious Hanji was about the details of his personal life (well, his relationship with Eren, but what else is new? Hanji was always in his business about that). But it was keeping her mind off of Mike which meant she wouldn’t be crying (hopefully) for a while. And so, of course, he told.

“Well, Petra’s family owns this little restaurant in the store chain across town. You were actually there like three days ago when you met Eren.” Hanji nodded. Levi went on. “Since Petra is one of my best friends I often go there to eat. Anyway, me and Erwin went down there for Lunch because he was cool and I was hungry and broke so he took me to get food.”

“Such a nice guy,” Hanji grinned.

“Yeah. Anyway, Eren and his shitty friends were there and it was like the third time I’ve seen him since I almost hit him, and he decided he wanted to come over to my and Erwin’s table and hang out with us. Somehow he ended up talking us into going to the movies with him and his friends after we ate. Erwin didn’t go actually; he had to head back to work so I was stuck with a bunch of brats.”

Hanji giggled. “So it was like your first date with Eren.”

“Not really,” Levi grimaced and sighed, annoyed. “We ended up seeing… well I forgot the movie. But his friends were so obnoxious. The only one not talking the entire time was Eren’s friend Armin.”

“Wait, you said he asked you out.” Levi nodded. “If this wasn’t the date then when did he—”

“I’m getting there woman.”

“Oh.”

Levi continued. “Anyway, since Erwin is an ass and had to go back to work, I had to get a ride from Eren. And he had no idea where to find Legion’s, so I had to—”

“Legion’s?”

“That’s the name of the apartments, Hanji… Legion’s Apartment Buildings…” Levi blinked and watched the girl think that over and nod, silently waiting for him to go on. “I had to give him directions. I swear, I could live right across from Ral’s and he would have driven around the entire town eight times before he took a proper left.”

Still smiling, Hanji leaned over to put the lid on the ice cream and walk it to Levi’s freezer. He followed her with his eyes. “Seems like you didn’t like him much at first.”

“He’d just turned seventeen not long before I met him so he still had the immaturity of a sixteen year old.” Hanji returned and sat back beside him. “Anyway when we finally got to Legion’s, I didn’t even have my seatbelt unbuckled before he blurts out ‘do you wanna hang out again sometime?’ and I just kind of stared at him like are you fucking serious.”

“Well he sure knows how to make a good impression. But that isn’t really him saying ‘Levi, will you go out with me’.”

“I’m not _there_ yet. _Any_ way… he apologized after I just sat there and stared at him for a minute. He said he was sorry that he and his friends were so annoying and obnoxious at the movies, he didn’t really know what came over them, and he wanted me to go as another ‘I’m sorry’ for running in front of my car. Um. And… there was this look in his eyes, Hanji.”

The way Levi’s voice softened at the mention of Eren’s eyes made Hanji’s own eyes gleam. She never really noticed the way Levi spoke about Eren differently than he spoke about other people. He still used strong words regarding the boy’s hardheaded stupidity, but his voice would soften and there would be a tinge of a smile pulling at Levi’s lips.

“What about this look in his eyes?”

“I… can’t explain it. His eyes are always bright and there’s always _something_ in them. But this was the first time I saw that _something_ and I felt I should give it a chance. Then we started hanging out and then he actually used the words ‘will you go out with me’ and I said sure.”

Hanji had her knees back up to her chest, turned toward Levi with her chin resting on her knees. Her smile told Levi what she was going to say before she could even say it. “You guys are adorable. What was your first date?”

Now Levi smiled. _Smiled_. Hanji hadn’t seen him smile since the one time she was there when he was talking to Eren on Skype. An actual smile. “There’s this bridge that allows cars over the river and into the next city. It’s about a mile away from Eren’s house. Under it is this little sandy patch and it looks like a beachy area.”

Hanji only watched as he spoke, never opening her mouth to interrupt at this point because the way Levi’s eyes shined in remembrance of this moment made her happy as well.

“It’s really flat and so we kind of had a picnic,” He told her. “Kind of. We actually only had, um, I think it was a bag of grapes and two Dr. Peppers. It was cute. He was all apologetic about being a cheap-o.”

_Eren’s adorable._

“We… went there a lot during the summer actually because despite the cars passing overhead it was really nice… being there. Just the two of us. They weren’t really dates because we would just sit in the sand and not really do anything after the first time. But around the fourth time we went there it was mid-June and he insisted we swim. He literally threw me into the river and oh, let me tell you Hanji, I wanted to punch him out… but then I saw that look again. He way his eyes shined and his laugh and his smile and his fucking _eyes_ Hanji…”

_You’re so in love._

“I pulled him in and we had, like, this splash war thing. I won because it went up his nose and he had a coughing fit and I had to slap his back a few times before he was finally done spitting back into the water. It was so gross, oh my god, and I was actually laughing really hard. Harder than I had in a while. I don’t know why, it was just so funny.”

_You two should get married._

“Then we got out and sat in the sand. It stuck to my pants and my legs and it’s such a nasty feeling and I told him I was going to kill him for making me sit in the sand without something to dry off first. He told me that we could head back to his house and I could shower and he could give me something to change into and I could hang out while my clothes were washed and dried. Like, whatever, Eren,” Levi let out a small laugh.”

_It makes me happy that you’re so happy._

“And… so we just sat there a little longer and just talked. Well, he mostly talked and I listened. He told me about his mom and his dad and his sister, his friends, what he’d like to major in once he got into college, his he hates math, how he’s looking forward to his senior year and dreading it all at once… and then he turns to me.”

_And you saw the look in those big green eyes, didn’t you. And you’ve always been in love with him but you never wanted to admit it. You’re like how Mike was with Nanaba. And you’re happy. And he’s happy. Happy and in love. And that makes me happy._

“He kissed me, Hanji. And it was really fast and he pulled away quickly and said he was sorry and got up and said we should hurry to his house before I caught a cold. In mid-June. Little idiot was so embarrassed. It was so cute. Hey… hey, are you okay?”

She blinked a few times and felt the wetness in her eyes, only to lift her glasses and wipe her tears on her wrist. “I’m okay. I’m just really happy right now. I’m happy that everyone is happy. You guys had your first kiss there… that’s cute. It’s like your special spot. A spot of your firsts. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Nicholas Sparks could write novels about you and Eren. Anyway… what happened next?”

Levi didn’t seem too convinced by Hanji’s spotty honesty, but went on regardless. “We always walked from his house to the bridge because there was no use in taking one of our cars, ya know? So, we walked back to his house… and halfway there he decided he wanted to hold my hand. I didn’t protest. His hand was sweaty but he insisted that it was because we had just gotten back from swimming. I didn’t buy it but I said nothing about it because he’s cute and I didn’t want him to let go of my hand. Then we got back to his house and I took a shower while he put my clothes in the washer. His clothes are too big for me and it was too late for me to figure that out by the time I had changed. He said I looked cute in baggy clothes.”

“You guys… you’re like a love story. It makes my heart happy.”

“You’re so sappy.”

“So are you.” Hanji gave him a serious look. “Look, I know you probably don’t want to take any advice from me since I just went through a break up, but any person can tell you’re in love with him. You both know it, too. And I think you two should get married.”

“What the—”

“No, listen.” Her voice was as serious as the sharp glint her eyes held and Levi shut his mouth. “That was the most you’ve ever said to me, and when we met you didn’t want anything to do with me, right? And after the whole phone incident, you didn’t want to tell me shit about Eren. Now here we are three months later in your apartment talking about Eren. Eren, Eren, _Eren._ Eren is literally the best thing you have, in my opinion, and you can’t let that go.”

“I wasn’t going to let—”

“Levi, shut up a second. I really think you two should get married. I know you haven’t been dating even a year and I’m not saying you need to do it now, but he is literally the only thing I’ve ever seen put a smile on your face. And he’s changed you into a person that _tries_ to care. If it weren’t for him, you shouldn’t have taken me into your home to cheer me up.”

“If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t even know you.”

 “And do you regret knowing me?”

Levi stared at her. “…Honestly? No.”

“Eren, Eren, Eren.” Hanji hummed.

“Eren.” Levi looked away from the girl now. “Marriage is… intense.”

“He’ll always be yours.”

“He already is mine.”

“Yeah, but _always_.” Hanji said. “And you want that. Don’t you?”

“Why the fuck did you even bring that up?”

“Because I’m me. But no, in all seriousness… I think you should consider it. He makes you happy. He makes you smile. He makes you want to talk to people and do things and he’s the reason you came back down here. I know you didn’t do that to get away from me because, let’s face it, I wouldn’t have given you the idea to come down here and take him to France with you in the first place if you—oh wait! How did that go?”

“How did what go?”

“Did you give him the tickets?”

Levi slowly nodded. “Yeah. He was so excited, I thought he was gonna piss his pants. His dad gave him a maybe.”

“Yay!” Hanji did that little dance, shaking her fists and swaying her shoulders left and right quickly for about three seconds. “You guys will have such a good time.”

Instead of responding, Levi turned to his phone to check the time. “Okay so it’s like ten and I want to go to bed. Um.” He turned back to her. “You can sleep in Erwin’s old room or on the couch but I’m telling you right now this couch is horrible to sleep on unless you’re only taking a nap. There’s a bathroom in his room and yeah.” The two of them stood and he led her to Erwin’s old bedroom, gesturing at the door. “There it is. Okay, so, night.”

He didn’t get half a step away before Hanji pulled him into a hug so tight he lost his breath for a minute. She buried her head down against his shoulder and smiled against his shirt. “Hey… thanks.”

“What?”

“For… letting me stay here. I know I’m not your favorite person but it really means a lot.”

Levi blinked and slowly wrapped his arms around her. “Yeah… okay, you’re welcome.” He patted her back awkwardly, unsure of how to respond to her, waiting for her to release him.

When she did, she smiled. “Goodnight, Levi.”

“Night.”

The two parted, Levi going into his bedroom and Hanji retreated into the living room for her bag.

After a very quick shower, Levi changed into a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt before crawling into bed. He reached over to get his phone from the nightstand where he left it before getting into the shower and just as his fingers reached it, it began to buzz. He picked it up to see _One New Text Message_ from Eren.

Opening the message, he had a smile expecting it to be something along the lines of “goodnight, I love you”, but what he read threw his smile into the deep depths of hell along with the assumptions of Rico the receptionist.

Eren 10:13P.M.: Dad said I can’t go to France with you and I’m really sorry. I wanted to tell you earlier but I couldn’t bring myself to call you because I didn’t want you to be angry. I know you said you could refund the tickets but I still want to apologize because we could have had such a good time and I’m an awful boyfriend that there was no way I could convince him to let me go with you… I’m sorry Levi. Maybe another time… I’m really really sorry. I’ll make it up to you somehow! :( I love you. Night

Levi scanned the message several times, hoping to find any sort of indication that Eren was joking and even waited a few minutes to see if his boyfriend would send a second message saying “just kidding!” but when nothing came, he just wanted to curl up and feel sorry for himself.

Levi 10:17P.M.: It’s okay. Goodnight. I love you too.

But it wasn’t okay. Levi was really looking forward to that fucking trip. Taking Eren to the Eiffel tower and watching the teen’s face light up at the beautiful structure. Taking him to museums and cafes and being cheesy, saying romantic things in French to him in a beret (and thanks to Tumblr he would add a comical _hon hon hon_ if the moment wasn’t too serious). But no. It was all ruined.

It was the first time in a while Levi let himself cry. It was also the first time in his life that he fell asleep while crying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. We're almost done with this piece of crap. Two chapters to go and an alternate ending that I can thank Kirschnickerdoodle for helping me come up with. Along with that, I'm considering writing little sides to this, like things that happen after the story is over and even things like the actual "in the moment" moment when Eren and Levi met, dates, and then stuff for Jearmin and MikaAni too. Tell me if you guys are okay with that :)


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You should totally read this because it's a little bit important and relevant to the chapter. I didn't include every little thing in this chapter that I had intended to because it would've ended up being hella fuckin' long. I may have to add another chapter because of other reasons, mainly being that I can't shove what all of what I had left for this chapter into what I had for chapter 30 and it work. So, probably two more chapters until the end and alternate end. It annoys me but the ending is perfect and I have to have all these events in order to get it to go right. Therefore, it's not quite over yet! Two more chapters! *uneasy laughter*
> 
> Secondly, I no longer feel the deep need to call this fic a piece of crap so I will abstain from doing so.
> 
> Okay, that's all.

_December 26 th_

Levi woke up with an urge to move right away. He sat up and stared at his closed door, and allowed himself only a minute to wake up before he threw his legs over the side of his bed to stand. Looking at his phone he saw it was just past ten now and he wasn’t sure how he felt about twelve hours of sleep. Maybe thankful? Normally his insomnia made the sleep he acquired limited and choppy (and shitty all together).

He changed quickly, almost as though unaware of himself in the sense that he didn’t understand why in the hell he was getting ready for a day that held no planned activity. Regardless, he now sit there in clean clothes, on the edge of his bed, stuffing his pant-legs into his snow boots before he laces them up.

Walking out of his bedroom now, phone in hand, he headed to the kitchen to make himself a pot of coffee—

“I already made coffee,” It wasn’t Hanji, but Petra, who called to him from the couch. He looked over to see her and Hanji sitting on his sofa, Hanji looking toward the TV and Petra half turned to grace him with a smile.

“Uh…” Levi didn’t say anything else until he got himself a cup of coffee, thanking her in his head because he didn’t feel like waiting two minutes to make it and _she makes it better anyway._ Walking to his small living room to join the two women, he sat on the other side of Petra. “Morning?”

“Morning,” She hummed, sipping what was left of her own coffee. She giggled at the look on Levi’s said that clearly said _I love you and all but why the fuck are you here?_

“Mornin’, Levi,” Hanji greeted without looking away from the TV. “I went across the hall to thank Petra for the ice cream a little while ago.”

“Mhm,” The ginger looked toward the TV as well. “She invited me over and I made coffee for you so you wouldn’t be irritated by the company.”

Levi gave a slow nod of understanding before realizing his original goal upon waking up and downing the coffee. It was still hot and scolded his throat, but he didn’t care. He stood and quickly made his way to the sink, washing the mug and leaving it full of water.

Petra watched him dart back into the living room and pull his coat from its place on the wall. “Where are you off to in such a hurry?”

“I need to go see Eren,” He said, pulling both sleeves on and half-zipping the coat. “He… his dad said no about France.”

Hanji gasped and whipped her head around to look at the short male. “He what?! Oh my god that sucks so much ass—I am so sorry Levi.”

“What…?” Petra had no idea what was going on.

“It’s kind of a long story,” Levi stuffed he keys to his car in his pocket along with his apartment key. “Hanji can tell you if you’re staying. Sorry to bail on you guys like this—”

“Go see your boyfriend,” Hanji ordered. Petra gave a nod in agreement.

Levi responded with a quick wave before bolting out the door.

Petra leaned against the couch and looked at Hanji, awaiting the explanation. “It isn’t really a long story,” Hanji began. “See, a little while ago me and Levi were talking about what he could get Eren for Christmas, and I suggested taking Eren to France for New Years. Levi bought the tickets and everything, and he was all excited and it was adorable.”

“And Eren’s dad said no…” Petra concluded with a small frown. “That sucks.”

“It does,” Hanji agreed. The two were silent for a minute then Hanji grinned. “Hey, wait. You’re Petra, and you’re Levi’s neighbor from across the hall…”

“Um… yes?”

“You dated him.”

“Oh, Levi talks about me?”

-

If not for the fact that there was ice on the roads, Levi probably would’ve broken the speed limit on the way to Eren’s house. Thank god that fucking stoplight was green when he came to it. Houses still had their Christmas lights on, seeing as it was only ten thirty in the morning there was no point in even trying to take them down.

Pulling up Eren’s driveway was mildly difficult due to the fucking ice, but Levi triumphs all, and that includes ice. He parked and got out, shutting the door a bit louder behind him than he intended, and walked to the front door. He knocked once, then twice, and then a third time before Mikasa was yelling from the other side.

She opened the door and was still in her pajamas with her hair tied back into a braid. “What the hell are you doing here at ten thirty in the morning… Eren’s still asleep.”

Still asleep? God, Eren could be so useless at times. Then again, he was even more useless when he was tired. “Can I come in?”

Mikasa shrugged and stepped aside, making way so Levi could step inside. Once he passed her she shut the door behind him and gestured toward the hall. “His room is that way.”

“You’re just going to let me go?” Levi planned on looking for Eren’s room anyway, but Mikasa was acting different. She used to not even want Levi near the house back when Eren told her that he and Levi were dating. Now she’s telling him where Eren’s room was.

“I think you’d be more comfortable in his room than with me in the living room.”

And she was right. He nodded in agreement and followed her gesture down the hall, heading for the closed door (as the open one lead to the bathroom), and walked in to see Eren on his stomach beneath this large blue comforter with an arm sticking out from the blue fabric and hanging off the edge of his mattress.

Eren’s room wasn’t as clean as Levi’s, but his floor was clear save for his school bag and a small pile of dirty laundry that Eren, as a teenager, was too lazy to deal with while on vacation.

Levi couldn’t help but smile as his boyfriend shifted in his sleep and mumbled something. He considered waking Eren up, but then decided cuddling would be a much better way for the brat to start his day. He shimmied off his winter coat and let it hang from the back of Eren’s desk chair and untied his boots quickly, sliding them off.

He crawled over Eren’s sleeping figure and lay flat beside him, waiting for the teen to shift again so he could slide his arms around Eren’s waist. Before that could happen, Eren opened his eyes and turned his head ever so slightly to lock sleepy eyes with the steely blue of his boyfriends.

Eren was silent for a moment and Levi was about to say something but Eren simply smiled and curled up against Levi, nuzzling his head beneath the others’ chin.

“Good morning,” He mumbled as Levi wrapped his arms around his torso. The two snuggled into each other’s warmth and both silently wished they could stay like this forever.

-

_11:30 A.M._

“So where should we go for lunch?” Hanji asked as Petra hit the button on the elevator to take them to the ground floor.

The two girls, in the little time they’ve known each other, had become fast friends and decided, ‘why the hell not. Let’s go out to lunch’.

Petra gave Hanji a shrug in response. “Honest to god I’ve been craving waffles for like three days but the only place that serves them near here is the Waffle House closer to the city and I refuse to go there.”

The elevator door opened and both girls stepped out. “Why’s that?”

Petra snorted, heading to the exit with the brunette following closely behind her. “Levi didn’t tell you about the Great Waffle House Incident of ’09?” Hanji shook her head, an intrigued smile on her face. “Okay well it’s not so much I refuse to go there, but I’m kind of… banned?”

“What the hell?” Hanji held back a laugh. “What’d you d—” As it were, Hanji wasn’t watching where she was going, more so watching Petra’s face light up at the thought of the story she was about to tell, and had bumped into a man holding a box of numbered keys that were now dropping to the floor. “Oh, sorry,”

Hanji knelt down to help the man she had bumped into, picking up the keys and tossing them back into the box. “It’s fine, I got it,” the man told her after a minute.

Her eyes narrowed and she looked at him silently, still picking up what was left of the keys, Petra standing beside her waiting patiently. “Hi, Moblit.” She said.

Once all the keys were returned to the box and Hanji and Moblit stood back up, the box more secure in his grip now, he greeted Petra with a nod. “Hello Petra and company,” _company_ referring to Hanji.

The two women watched as he strode toward the desk and set the box down at the resection desk and talk to Rico. Then upon exiting the building, Hanji blinked.

Petra zipped her jacket all the way up to her neck as the cold winter air graced their presence, stuffing her hands in her pockets and jingling her car keys within the pocket. “I don’t think you’ve had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Berner, have you? Unless Levi’s brought you over during his shift,”

“This is the first time I’ve been to Levi’s apartment, actually.” Hanji followed Petra to her tiny black car, hood deceiving the natural color by being covered with pure white snow. “What a name… Moblit Berner?”

“Mhm,” Petra unlocked the car doors and both women got in, Petra at the driver side and Hanji to the passenger. “Jesus it’s cold out here.”

 _His name is unique._ “Let’s just drive around.” Petra nodded and Hanji smiled. “Hey, so tell me about the thing from Waffle House.”

“Oh!” Petra began to laugh, starting the car and turning the heat up. “Alright so it was me, Erwin, Levi, and my now-fiancé Auruo.” Petra pulled out of the parking lot to the apartment building, backing out carefully onto the icy road, and then started down the road. “I’ll just give you the shortened version, if that’s okay.”

Hanji nodded.

“So basically what happened was—okay you need to know that Auruo has a tendency to bite his tongue and bleed all over himself and Levi at twenty-one had a tempter to boot—so what happened was we were sitting at our table waiting for our food to get there and Auruo was talking so fast he bit his tongue, bless his heart, and got blood all over his nice shirt.”

“Oh _bless_ it,” Hanji’s tone was mocking.

Petra paused to give Hanji a playful smile before locking eyes with the road again. “Levi, being how he was at the time, made a very unintentionally crude joke to which Auruo made it perverted… and so in an attempt to hit him with my bag, it fucking flew out of my hand and it… may or may not have knocked a family of four’s entire order out of a waitress’s hand… and spilled hot coffee on her… and broken two mugs.”

“Oh my god—I’m sorry, I’m going to laugh at you” And she did laugh. “What did they even say? Oh man, fuck… okay, okay but what did he say that made you hit him?”

Petra’s face turned a light shade of red and she made sure to keep her eyes on the road as she turned into the Dairy Queen parking lot. “Um… well, Levi said ‘cat got your tongue’, and… well, I’m sure your imagination can help you think up the crude response Auruo used.”

Hanji stared at Petra with her mouth gapping wide. “Oh my god.”

“I know you want to laugh.”

“I do,” And she did. She did laugh. Very hard. Almost to the point of tears.

-

_11:54 A.M._

Now Eren was actually waking up and acknowledging that Levi was cuddling him in his bed. He had fallen back to sleep a little while after curling up to his boyfriend and at some point had rolled over, his back facing Levi. Opening his eyes, he blushed at the realization that they were spooning and remained silent, feeling Levi’s arms tight around him.

Or, one arm. He could hear tapping behind him and he rolled slowly to see Levi tapping his thumb against his phone; presumably texting.

“Hey sleeping beauty,” Levi hummed, ceasing in his typing momentarily to lean in close to Eren and kiss him on the forehead. Eren would’ve preferred the lips but Levi wasn’t one to appreciate morning breath. He returned to his phone.

Eren yawned into the palm of his head and smiled. “Who’re ya textin’?”

“Erwin,” Levi pulled Eren closer to him and the teen threw his right leg over Levi’s waist and wrapped it around him, nestling his head into the curve of Levi’s neck. His eyes scanned over the little text bubbles he could see on Levi’s screen and then he shut his eyes, turning back to nuzzle against Levi’s neck and breath in his wonderful scent.

They were silent for a minute, inhaling and exhaling together, before Levi spoke again. “Since I didn’t see him yesterday, I was thinking I could go today, and you could come too if you want.” He paused. “Okay no, I want you to come.”

Eren nodded. “Okay. When?”

“Later.”

“Okay.”

-

_12:33 P.M._

“Well fuck, if I knew there was gonna be all this fucking traffic I wouldn’t have bothered getting you out of bed this morning,”

Levi tapped his fingers impatiently against the steering wheel and glared at the abundance of cars ahead of them. He considered backing up and heading back to Eren’s house but fuck if there weren’t cars behind them with drivers just as impatient as he was if not more.

Eren, being optimistic as always, was just smiling at Levi. “Lighten up. Smile”

“No.”

“Please?”

“…Okay.” He did. It was forced, but he did.

Eren smiled back.

-

_12:50 P.M._

Levi shut his door and waited for Eren to walk around the car and join him. They walked up to the door and Levi had the compulsive need to ring the doorbell an infinite number of times before Erwin could get to the door.

“Damn give me a chance to get up,” The tall blond smiled down at the other two males, stepping aside so they could enter. “Hello, Eren.”

“Hi Erwin.” Eren smiled back. Levi pulled him into the house and Erwin shut the door behind them as they wiped their shoes on the little rug beside the door.

Eren and Levi spent the majority of their day with Erwin and it was nice. Eren had only hung out with Erwin once in the past, before he and Levi began dating, and the man was exactly the same. The situation, however, was far different (thankfully) because when Eren met Erwin it was under the circumstances of “your best friend almost ran me over”.

Erwin was cool, to say the least. He and Levi argued and joked about the same way as Eren did with Jean, but the two older men had a close friendship like that of his and Armin’s. The brunet couldn’t help but grin at the way Levi’s eyes lit up and the way he laughed and smiled at things Erwin said. It was like when they went to his parent’s house.

And it became apparent to Eren; Levi felt _at home_ at Erwin’s house, as he had when he was with his parents. Granted there was no tension when they arrived at Erwin’s house like there had been when Eren got to meet the Rivaille’s, but still.

He realized how comfortable Levi seemed to be. And it made him tense up for one reason: Levi never looked this relaxed when coming over to Eren’s house.

Did he not feel welcomed? Mikasa couldn’t be that much of a threat to him could she? No, of course not. They had a mutual understanding and respect for each other.

 _Oh. It’s my dad._ Eren zoned out of the conversation between Levi and Erwin, getting lost in his own thoughts. _My dad must make him uncomfortable. He did hate the thought of me being gay and having a boyfriend… and he did reject Levi’s offer to take me to France…_ Eren frowned. _That’s got to be it, right? He doesn’t feel at home at my house because of my dad._

Eren froze mid thought, his mind suddenly playing a dark trick on him. _Maybe it’s me. Do I make him uncomfortable? No, that can’t be it… of course it could. Don’t rule out the factors until you have proof that it’s not you he’s uncomfortable around._ Eren tried to shake the thought off but it came back. _Look at him smiling at Erwin. Look at him laughing with Erwin. Look at him. He’s comfortable and happy. But not with you._

He finally managed to push the thought out and he stared at the floor while Erwin and Levi carried on their conversation.

 _You’re always so happy now_.

His eyes darted back and forth from Levi to Erwin then back to Levi.

_It’s not just him right?_

Erwin’s deep laugh melded weirdly with Levi’s indescribably perfect one and it sent shivers down Eren’s spine… and he smiled.

 _I liked when you laugh like that._ “You should do it more often.”

Levi paused mid-laugh and turned his head to look at Eren, his smile remained on his face. “Huh?”

“I—uh…” He hadn’t meant to say that out loud but Eren still continued to smile back. “I said you should do that more often. Laugh really hard, I mean.”

Erwin watched the way the two males on his couch looked at each other; longing smiles and loyal eyes. The silence that consumed Erwin’s living room was a comfortable one.

-

_2:34 P.M._

“Okay so if you could be any Disney princess,” Hanji said, unlocking the door to Levi’s apartment. “Who would it be?”

“Merida.” Petra answered quickly as though anticipating the question.

“Hella rad,” Hanji mumbled and shut the door after Petra stepped inside. “I’d pick her too.” 

“You know, after the whole thing with the bear and her mom was over.” Petra added.

“Really?” Hanji followed Petra to the couch and they sat. “You wouldn’t want to go on the adventure she did in order to turn her mom back into a human? That shit was badass.”

“I’m not one for danger,” the ginger replied with a small grin. “I’d probably hide up in a tree, scared for my life that the bear was going to maul me and gouge my eyes out.”

Suddenly Hanji began to cackle.

“What?” Petra’s eyes sparkled.

“I guess you could say you’d be…” Hanji paused for dramatic effect. “ _Petra_ -fied.”

“…Oh my god.”

Both girls hissed in a fit of laughter. It was surprisingly the first time Petra had heard that play on her name.

-

_5:22 P.M._

Erwin told Levi he should go warm up the car before actually leaving. So as Levi stepped outside to do so, Erwin pulled Eren aside.

“I need to talk to you really quick.” He blond told him.

Eren nodded. “What’s up?”

“Well… rather, I have to tell you something. I really appreciate what you’re doing Eren.” He noticed the confused expression on the teen’s face and went on. “With Levi, I mean. I haven’t seen him this happy in a long time.”

Eren half-smiled. “I can’t take credit for his happiness.”

“You can, and you should. I’m sure you’ve noticed Levi can be very critical of a lot of things. And along with that, he’s not very happy very often. Or at least he used to not be, with what happened with his parents… but he told me you reunited them?”

“I only told him he should go visit them. It was his decision.”

“You pushed him. You’re the reason he did it. Anyway, again, thank you. You’re just what he needed… and I’m glad he found you.”

Eren’s smile was full now and Levi stepped back inside not a minute later. “Okay, car’s warm. You ready?” He looked to Eren and the teen nodded.

“See you, Erwin,” Eren reached out to shake the taller man’s hand but was quickly pulled in for a big bear hug.

When Erwin let go, Eren wouldn’t admit he was a little light headed. Erwin noticed though and laughed, clasping Eren on the shoulder apologetically. “Sorry.”

He pulled Levi over and the smaller male embraced his closest friend tightly when Erwin hugged him. Eren couldn’t help but let out a small laugh at the sight and when the two released each other Levi snorted. “Don’t make it gay, Erwin.”

“Go away, shorty,” Erwin laughed in response.

After Eren and Levi left Erwin’s house and (thank fucking god, the traffic wasn’t nearly as bad as it was before) made it to the red-light before Levi spoke. “So I need to go back before the fifth.”

“What?”

“I need to get back to France before the fifth of January. School starts back for us on the sixth and I don’t want Hanji and me to suffer jetlag for our first day back in class.”

“Oh…” Eren stared at the dashboard. He knew Levi had to leave early January, but he hadn’t expected him to actually bring it up so soon. He sighed. “Uh-huh…”

“But,” Levi started. “I plan on making our last week together nice before I have to leave. It can be just us.”

“What are you going to do about the tickets…?” Eren forced the question out. He didn’t feel very comfortable asking but he really wanted to know.

“I’ll probably exchange them for a trip around the third or fourth so Hanji and I can get prepared to go back.” He said honestly. “Don’t think I won’t spend anything on you, though.”

Eren smiled at him. “You’re spoiling me.”

“I know, and you love it, so that’s all that matters.”

When they returned to Eren’s house, Mikasa wasn’t home but Grisha was. However he was asleep on the couch with a half-empty bowl of Doritos on the coffee table and an opened can of beer beside it.

Levi cringed and squeezed Eren’s hand protectively—he knew how some parents could get when drunk—but Eren smiled and pulled him through the living room to his bedroom. “Don’t worry about him,” He shut his bedroom door and Levi released his hand, and the two pulled their jackets off and tossed them on top of Eren’s computer chair. “He can hold his alcohol well.”

Levi’s eyes told Eren that’s not what he was worried about.

“He’s not a bad drunk,” Eren assured him with a smile. “He just gets loud and thinks everything is hilarious.”

“Oh.” Levi sat on the bed and Eren sat beside him.

Eren lay back with his legs hanging off the edge of his mattress. “So what’re we gonna do for the next week and a half?”

Levi shrugged. He wasn’t entirely sure. He had promised Petra they would talk just them, so he had to rule a day out for that. He also wanted to try to get together with all of his friends (including Hanji, if she was feeling up to going out and possibly being around Mike and Nanaba) since he hadn’t hung out with the lot of ‘em for quite a while. And of course, he wanted to spend as much time as he possibly could with Eren.

He lay back with Eren and the teen curled up against him, his hair tickling Levi’s neck and chin when he buried his face against the curve of Levi’s neck. Levi closed his eyes and began to relax, though that relaxation didn’t last long when he felt Eren’s lips on his neck.

“Eren?”

“Hmm?” Eren didn’t lift his head and placed kisses up Levi’s neck and along his jaw. Eren’s lips were warm and soft on Levi’s skin and _fuck_.

Levi didn’t reply so Eren rolled over top of him to straddle him. Levi gave him a challenging look, a small smirk working its way onto his face. “What do you think you’re doing?”

Eren answered by leaning down and pressing his lips onto Levi’s. On instinct, Levi opened his mouth and their tongues danced together. The dance turned into a fight for dominance that Levi let Eren win and smiled against the teens lips upon tasting the peppermint fresh flavor on Eren’s tongue (Erwin and his fucking mints, thank god).

Levi’s focus on Eren’s wonderful kissing abruptly went away when Eren began grinding his hips against Levi’s. He pulled away, no time to be kind of grossed out by the line of saliva between their lips or to notice his boyfriends red cheeks. “What are you doing?”

“You know what I’m doing,” Eren continued to grind and went back down for another kiss. Levi kissed back but pulled before Eren cold hypnotize him with his tongue.

“No.” He knew they shouldn’t, not with Grisha in the living room. Not in Eren’s bedroom, either.

“Why?” Eren whined, the word coming out longer. His eyes practically finished the sentence; _why don’t you wanna do it?_

Levi gave him an apologetic yet mocking smile. “You don’t have the right supplies.”

“You don’t carry that stuff with you?” Eren seemed generally curious.

“What the f—” He was offended, slightly, but amused at the same time. “You think I carry lube and condoms around in my pocket? I’m not one of those guys that expect he’ll get laid at any random time of the day, Eren.”

“I know that, but I still figured you were always prepared.”

The older male laughed. It was loud, louder than the one Erwin had caused, and that made Eren happy. “I’ll tell you what,” Levi lifted his arms up and wrapped them around Eren’s neck, pulling him down so he could whisper against the teen’s lips. “I’ll give you something that doesn’t require that stuff. But on one condition.”

Eren smiled. Levi’s breath was warm against his lips. “What is it?”

“You tell me you love me the entire time. That’s all I want to hear, you got it?”

Eren nodded.

Levi didn’t have to try hard to roll over and have Eren on his back. He looked down at the teen and smiled, placing a quick kiss to his lips before moving back down towards Eren’s—

“Okay I knew your hormones are raging but wow,” the smile turned to a smirk. Eren couldn’t understand how Levi had already managed to pull his jeans and boxers down to his thighs.

And now the brunet was blushing as Levi took Eren’s cock in his hand. He began to pump, teasing Eren by moving his hand in an agonizingly slow fashion. Then he stopped all together and his eyes shot back to Eren.

“Well?”

“Huh?” Eren’s voice felt constricted and he blamed Levi seven-hundred and eighty percent.

“What did I tell you to say, Eren?” Levi’s voice was low and his tone sensual and _oh my god why are you doing this to me, Levi?_

“I love you,” he replied as quickly as he could form the words. “I love you Levi.”

Levi continued to pump, not as slow as before but still in a teasing manner. He wanted Eren to say it more.

“I love you, Levi—I love—nnh,” Eren covered his mouth with his hand as Levi licked the tip, his tongue grazing the slit and causing Eren to shiver. He couldn’t get his mouth to work right so the next three times he said _I love you_ it came out in a jumbled mess of flustered whines.

Levi’s tongue slid up the shaft and he adjusted himself just slightly, positioning his mouth above Eren’s cock and then taking Eren into his mouth.

Eren hissed beneath his hand and forced out the requested phrase over and over until his own mouth decided to work again; he said it so many times at this point that the words didn’t sound right. But he knew he was saying it and Levi didn’t stop, so he didn’t care.

Levi’s mouth was hot and wet and his tongue was doing wonders that Eren didn’t know could feel so fucking wonderful and _Jesus fucking Christ Levi_.

“I love you,” The teen moaned under his hand and felt the pleasure bubbling up in his belly.

Levi said something in return, most likely _I love you too_ , but Eren didn’t hear anything. He only felt the vibrations from Levi’s mouth travel up his body and make the pleasure in belly burn, making another moan erupt from his throat. It was louder than the past few and he wished he could shut himself up for fear his dad would wake up and ruin everything.

And now, as Levi turn his head to let his lips ghost against the flesh, sucking in a breath through his nose, his tongue flicked the head and Eren bit the back of his hand. “I love you,” He managed between moans he was able to keep hushed.

That is, until looked back up at Eren and sent him off the edge. The heat in Eren’s stomach gave way and he finished down Levi’s throat.

He whimpered and panted and covered his eyes as Levi swallowed and pulled away, getting to his feet and not saying a thing until he returned from the bathroom.

In the two minutes Levi was gone, Eren couldn’t manage to catch his breath. When Levi returned he was laughing.

“Jeez you look spent.”

“You swallowed—”

“Mhm,” Levi plopped back down beside Eren. “Pull your pants back up. As much as I appreciate your lower half being exposed, I don’t want to risk someone coming in your room.”

Eren groaned while Levi laughed at him some more and pulled his boxers and pants back up. He caught his breath and looked at Levi who finally stopped laughing at him. And now he was just smiling at him. And Eren could feel himself blushing again.

“I love you,” Levi told him.

Eren’s heart ached in the best way. It fluttered. “I love you too.”

Levi leaned in to kiss him and he kissed back, sliding his hand into Levi’s and intertwining their fingers as soft lips moved in gentle motions together.

Eren smiled into the kiss, completely forgetting he ever thought Levi was uncomfortable around him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! I have no idea how to write a blow job. I tried.
> 
> I would like to point out this is the biggest word document I have ever written and will probably ever write. It has 202 pages and it's not even done. I'm kind of proud of myself.
> 
> ~Two more then it's done. *casually excludes alternate ending from all announcements*


	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hanji tells Levi a thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Filler chapter because I fail at life! :D
> 
> I have no excuse for why it took me almost a month to write this. You guys deserve better and that is why I am going to make the next chapter as fluffy (and possibly smutty if you dont mind waiting long amounts of time because smut takes me 400 years to write) as possible. 
> 
> I also have no idea when this is gonna be over anymore. I'd say we have between 2 and 5 chapters left, that included the alternate ending (IF I EVEN WANT TO WRITE IT BY THE TIME THE ACTUAL ENDING HAPPENS) and I'm pissed off about that. But oh well.

Eren wasn’t keeping track of time until after Levi left his house that night. He insisted Levi stay for dinner but Levi had to decline, saying he had a baby back at his apartment and he didn’t want to leave her on Petra for too long.

The teen walked him out to his car, not bothering to put his jacket back on since he wouldn’t be out there too long. Levi stood by the driver side but didn’t open his door, instead, turning to look at his jacket-less boyfriend like he was an idiot. Which Eren was, but in a good way.

“You really have to go?” Eren whined. He and Levi both knew that Levi would have to leave in a few days, and Eren wanted to spend as much time with him as he possibly could before he was gone for another five-and-a-half months.

“I do,” Levi sighed. He placed his hand on Eren’s cheek. Eren leaned into the touch. “But we’ll spend the day together tomorrow, too. I’m going to plan this week out for us. We can go to the movies, take a drive, I don’t care, and really it’s whatever you want to do…” he trailed off in thought for a moment. “But tomorrow I need to go and exchange the tickets.”

“They’re still in my room, let me go—”

“I already got them,” Levi assured him. Eren sighed. “After I exchange them, I’ll come pick you up and we can go do whatever the fuck you want to do.”

Eren’s hands found Levi’s shoulders and he leaned down, pressing his cold lips to those of his boyfriend’s. “Tell Hanji I said hi. And Petra, too.”

“Will do.” Levi pulled him back down for another kiss.

Then another.

They could’ve made out in the snow for hours if it wasn’t for the fact that Eren didn’t want to get his jacket like the stubborn shit he was. And Levi couldn’t have a sick boyfriend, oh no. “Go back inside. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“When you get home can I call you?”

Levi could have responded by asking why, but he knew why, so he didn’t. And so he nodded. “Yeah, or let me call you. I’ll call you after I get dinner for me and my guest.”

“Why is Hanji staying with you anyway?”

Ah, right. Levi had mentioned Hanji staying with him, but the reason of _why_ hadn’t really come out. The reason for that being Levi didn’t think it right to let Eren, the loudest human being he’d ever known in his life—save for Hanji, but he knew Eren longer, so that was the exception—be in on Hanji’s personal business.

Then again, she did him wrong, so it was _only_ right. Levi’s thought process was really just a loophole finder fifty percent of the time.

“She and Mike broke up and it would be awkward and shit for her to be staying there. Okay I need to go, I’m sure Petra’s tired of babysitting and you need to get your sweet ass inside before you catch a cold.”

Eren whined but nodded. “Okay,”

Levi opened the door to his car, got in and shut the door behind him, pulling his seatbelt out and let out a small sigh before putting the key in and rolling the window down. “You’re not inside yet.”

He received a smile as Eren leaned in through the open window and pressed a final kiss on his lips. “I love you, Levi.”

“I love you too. Now go inside, dipshit.”

Eren backed away and gave a small wave before heading inside. Levi watched him go the whole way, eyes trailing down to steal a glance at Eren’s adorable butt before backing out of the driveway and down the road.

Levi had gotten about a third of the way back to his apartment when his phone began to vibrate violently in his pocket. He knew better than to check it; the roads were icy and slick and snow was starting to fall again. Sighing, he tightened his grip on the steering wheel and turned left.

Several red lights later he arrived back home with his phone still going crazy in his pocket. “I swear to god, Eren—” his eyes stopped on the contact written out on his screen and sighed as the device continued vibrating in his hand. He answered.

“What do you want? I’m in the lobby now.”

“Oh. I was asking when you’d be back.” Hanji replied.

“Um. Like right now. Hey, Moblit.” Levi waved at the man sitting where Rico normally did, receiving a wave in return. “Why?” he returned to Hanji and pressed the up button on the elevator, waiting for the doors to open.

Pressing the button on the elevator, Levi waited for the doors to open. “Well, I was gonna ask if you wanted me to make dinner. When Petra and I went out today—”

“Hanji I’m going to be up in like five minutes, do you want to just talk to me then?”

“Okay~” She hung up right after. Levi sighed and stepped into the elevator, hitting the button for his floor as he did so, and leaned against the wall as the doors shut and he was brought up.

He stepped out once the doors opened again and made his way down to his apartment. Levi cringed; he could hear music blaring on the other side of the wall and he took a moment to pinch the bridge of his nose and ask himself _what on earth made me think bringing her here was a good idea_.

After he unlocked the door and stepped inside, he witnessed something he didn’t know whether to place as horrifying or amusing. Hanji stood in his kitchen singing into a big wooden spoon. He went with amusing.

Levi shut the door but Hanji didn’t hear him, proceeding to sing into the spoon and then stir something in a pot on his stove.

“Oi, shithead!” He shouted.

Hanji turned quickly and rushed around the counter, leaving the spoon in the pot, to get to Levi’s laptop and pause the song on her YouTube playlist. “Hi!”

“Three questions.” Levi eyed her curiously with amusement in his tone as he pulled his phone and keys from his jacket pockets then proceeded to hang it up beside the door. He placed his phone and keys beside the laptop on his coffee table.

“Shoot,” Hanji smiled.

“One, how have you not gotten any complaints about that loud ass music?”

“Nobody complains when it comes to Heart.” Hanji’s eyes narrowed in utter seriousness. However, the serious look dissolved into hard laughter and she needed a minute to calm herself. “No, actually I don’t think anyone is home, to be honest.”

“Oh. Okay, well two, how the fuck did you guess my laptop password?”

Now she gave him the look of _you’re kidding me right?_ “Levi.”

“Hanji.”

“I expected a much more complicated password than ‘Eren Jaeger’ in all caps, but who would’ve thought you’re _that_ person that puts their sweethearts name as their password.” Levi’s annoyed expression made Hanji laugh even harder. “Okay, okay. What’s three?”

“What the fuck are you cooking over there?”

“Oh!” Hanji rushed back to the kitchen with Levi following a few paces behind her. “Seeing as all you have is freezer vegetables, and pasta noodles, and left over chicken from what I hope was recent,” She glanced at him for a nod, which she got. “I decided I’d make you my famous home-made chicken soup. Since it’s as cold as Jack Frost’s ass out there, it thought it’d be nice.”

“The chicken is from Christmas Eve.”

“Fantastic!”

“And it’s colder than Jack Frost’s ass out there,” Levi remarked and stalked back into his living room. He turned his laptop to face him and pressed play on the video Hanji had previously paused. The chorus of _Barracuda_ blasted and he felt as though his eardrums would burst. He turned the volume down drastically to where Hanji could only hear it if she were quiet and he leaned back against the couch, exhaling deeply.

Hanji was silent for the most part, humming along with the tune until it ended, and then she plopped down beside Levi with two mugs of coffee. “Thought you might like this. Petra told me how you like your coffee.”

Levi took the mug and gave Hanji a small smile. “You asked if I wanted you to cook, but I never gave you my answer.”

She shrugged. “I figured it was a yes since you’re a lazy bastard.”

“Thanks.”

The two sipped their coffee in silence.

“Soup’s cooling,” She informed him. “So… how was your day?”

Not thinking, Levi responded with the most recent of events. “I gave Eren a blow job.”

Hanji nearly choked on her coffee and had to place the mug down on the coffee table and compose herself. “Oh. Well. I… don’t really know how to respond to that.”

Levi glanced at her apologetically. “Sorry, I didn’t intend to say that. Um… it was a good day. I took Eren to Erwin’s house with me. Then… yeah that’s pretty much all I did.”

“Well as long as you had fun,” She said.

“What about you?”

The brunette smiled as though completely forgetting what he had told her only a moment ago. “It was great! Petra is such a sweet heart, I adore her. We went out for breakfast and she told me about the time you guys got kicked out of Waffle House—”

“Jesus Christ…”

“—and we just talked a lot. We played ‘who can ask the stupider hypothetical question’, talked about just everything. I’ve never had the chance to do that with anyone.”

“The chance to just talk?”

“Yeah. Like, I told you about my education before college, private school and what not.” Levi nodded. “I had friends, sure, but they weren’t the kinds of friends you could just sit with and talk to for hours about anything and everything.”

“I’m not one of those people either,” Levi brought his mug up to his lips and sighed. “Yet somehow I ended up getting roped into a bunch of friendships with people who are _exactly_ like that.”

Hanji hid a smile and looked away from the black haired male. “Levi, _you’re_ exactly like that.”

“I am not.”

“I’ve known you for five months and I know more about you in that time than I’ve known about any of the girls from my private school in all of the years I’ve attended.” She told him. “Like yesterday when I asked you how you met Eren, I only expected the short answer. I never thought you’d tell me about your first date with him, your first kiss with him, or even the honest answer that was ‘I almost ran him over’.”

Levi shrugged slowly. “You’re the kind of person that gets it out of people then. I hate talking.”

“You love talking, don’t lie. And… You’re fun to talk to though. Even if you are an asshat.”

“I could say the same about you.” He didn’t look at her.

Hanji propped her elbows up on her knees and looked down into her coffee mug. “The day I stole your phone,” She began hesitantly. “It was the only thing I could think of that would make you come after me and talk to me.”

He blinked. “I planned on shoving your glasses down your throat.”

“I know…” She smiled and turned her head to look at him. His eyes were still narrowed, yet relaxed, and he looked back. “But I still knew you’d come after me. And I knew you were _the_ type of person that wouldn’t just let it go just like that. I wanted you to be my friend.”

Levi raised an eyebrow but opted to remain silent as he took another sip of his coffee. He waited for Hanji to go on.

“And believe it or not,” She continued, sitting up straight and giving him yet another painfully happy smile. “I knew you’d keep me around. You never once treated me like a shitty slave, though. Sure, you made me buy you shit, carry your shit, and hang around with you, but you never hurt me or degraded me or anything. You even got me a birthday present. My birthday is in _September_ , Levi. You hated me in _August_.”

“I don’t see your point.” He lied. Levi looked away from her now.

“My point _is_ , Levi, I wanted to be your friend. And I went about it the wrong way, I know, but look at us now. We’re sitting here in your apartment the day after Christmas, _talking_ ,because we’re friends.You adore me, don’t lie.”

“Think what you want.”

“I will.” She continued to smile. “And I think you’re my best friend.”

“You’re insane. Who would want me as their best friend?”

“That’s the stupidest question I’ve ever heard and I cannot believe it came from you.” The playful tone in her voice was gone. “Erwin, for one, and the day he picked us up at the airport and dropped you off at Eren’s house, he told me about you coming out to him. After everything you two had been through together, he’s one pretty awesome motherfucker to call you his best friend. And Petra; the whole story there. She told me about your break up today. Yet you’re still her best friend.”

“Okay.”

“No, don’t even get all ‘whatever’ on me, I’m trying to make you see that you’re great.”

“Okay.”

“Levi, do not make me get all Tumblr on your ass.”

“Ew.”

The two of them broke into laughter, Levi almost spilling his coffee in the process.

After their laughter died down, Levi spoke. “I get it, I guess.”

“Good.” Hanji jumped to her feet and strolled back into the kitchen. “Soups cooled! You hungry?” She began rummaging through his cabinets for some bowls.

“I could go for some soup.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay after this we're gonna be getting back on track with the relationship and Eren and Levi spending an entire week together. I may or may not be able to squish it all into one chapter, which is why I have no idea when I'll be finished with this fucking thing. Regardless, thanks for all the love guys.
> 
> (I'll be able to do the cliche "title of the story in the work" thing soon and I'm sO EXCITED FOR THAT. HELLA.)


	31. Chapter 31

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren is a cute idiot, but what else is new?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay. Okay. Okay. Yeah.
> 
> //edit: i am very sorry about the fact that i suck with past and present tense. im gonna work on that, though. sorry.

Eren stares at the ceiling of his bedroom. It’s nearly eleven thirty at night and Levi still hadn’t called him. He wanted to be the first to call, but of course, he waited.

A gentle knocking sounded at his door and he turned his attention. “Who is it?”

“Mikasa.”

“Come in.”

His sister opened the door and stepped inside. She shut the door behind her and made her way toward his bed, stopping just beside it.

“Do you want to sit?” Eren asks, sitting up and making room for his sister. She nods and sits beside him. “What’s up, sis?”

Mikasa sat back until she was against the wall and Eren moved so that he was beside her. “Can I ask you something, Eren?”

“You just did.”

“I’m serious.” She gives him a pointed look.

“Okay, sorry. Yes, what is it?”

“Do you ever feel like…” She looks down at her lap. “Do you ever feel like Levi loses interest in you?”

He bites on the inside of his cheek, not wanting to answer and for an elaboration. An explanation. “Why?”

She let out a small sigh. “I really shouldn’t be coming to _you_ about this.”

“What?”

Pulling her legs up to her chest, Mikasa props her chin up on her knee. “Relationship advice.”

Noticing his sisters nervous yet somehow serious expression, Eren grins in attempt to help her relax. “You kidding? Your gay brother is the best person to come to for lesbian relationship advice.” He saw Mikasa wasn’t amused and tried again. “Um… yeah. Sometimes, yes, I do feel like Levi loses interest in me. Why? Do you feel like Annie’s losing interest in you?”

He receives a small nod from his sister. “I know I shouldn’t even bother with it, but it’s worrying me. Like… I don’t know how to explain.”

“I know what you mean, sis. Believe me. The first few months that Levi was in France I though he wanted to be done with me.”

“That’s different, though. Annie lives in the apartments beside the movie theater, not in another country. It’s not a long distance hurt-type of thing. It’s… she’s bored with me.”

“Well you’re kind of boring.” Eren huffs, again trying to cheer his sister up.

“Eren I am being serious.” Mikasa glared at him, her eyes then turning into pleading charcoal colored orbs. “Please.”

“Why do you think she’s lost interest in you?”

“I don’t know.” Mikasa answers.

“Does it just feel like it?”

“I don’t know.” She repeats.

“Well… did you do something? Or _not_ do something?”

“Eren. I don’t. Know.” Her voice cracks. “What did you feel? When you thought Levi had gotten bored with you?”

“Well, most of the reason is because of a thing with his phone and the whole ‘I love you’ thing that I told you about.” Mikasa nods in understanding. “But, I felt like shit. Kinda like ‘oh, I did something wrong’ mixed with ‘what the fuck is your problem’. So shitty and angry, basically.”

“I don’t feel angry. But I do feel shitty.” Mikasa tells him.

“Have you tried talking to Annie about this?”

“Did you talk to Levi about it?”

Eren thinks back to late September when the whole big thing happened. He remembers feeling like an asshole, crying in the shower that one time, staying up late hoping for a phone call, then finally getting to talk to Levi again and finding out what was going on. Never once did he mention how he felt like Levi was bored with him.

Because he wasn’t.

“Annie isn’t bored with you.” Eren avoids the question. “Trust me. Maybe she’s just going through a thing. Or she’s tired. Remember that phase you went through in seventh grade where you didn’t want to talk to anyone or be around people?”

“Yes.”

“Maybe she’s going through something like that where she just doesn’t feel like talking. Levi does that sometimes and he doesn’t call me.” He glances at his phone. “…even if it’s only been a few hours. But you know. So talk to her about it. Ask if she’s okay and whatever. She may just be going through a thing.”

Mikasa lets a small smile stretch across her lips and she sits up straight again. “Are you waiting for Levi to call you? Am I bothering you?”

Eren shakes his head. “I was, but you’re not bothering me.”

“Good,” Mikasa grins. “Because I wasn’t gonna leave either way.”

The two grow silent for a few moments, grinning and looking off into a bunch of nothingness, waiting for the other to speak. They were both quiet, however, for three minutes, passing onto ten, and finally, Eren yawns.

“Are you sleepy?” His sister asks.

“Nah.” He replies. “Just… tired.”

“Same thing.”

“It’s not the same thing.”

Mikasa giggles and Eren shoves her gently, receiving a soft push back.

“I’m gonna head in,” Mikasa says, eyes looking to Eren’s door. “S’almost midnight.”

“Talk to Annie tomorrow.” Eren tells her when she’s off his bed.

She nods. “I will.” She stops at the door and looks over her shoulder at him. “Hey, I meant to ask. Was he over here today?”

“Levi?”

“No, Santa Clause. _Yes,_ Levi.”

Eren rolls his eyes. “Dad was passed out on the couch.”

“That’s not what I asked.” Mikasa spoke in her _mom_ voice.

“…Yes. Levi was here.”

He sees the small smile on her lips before she speaks again. “Good.”

She left the room and he remained with his back to the wall, confused.

_Good?_

Levi sends him a text not long after Mikasa leaves the room.

_Levi [12:03A.M.]: Sorry for not calling earlier._

Eren lies back on his bed, phone in his hands.

_Eren [12:04A.M]: is everything ok_

_Levi [12:05A.M]: Everything is fine. Hanji just distracted me. It’s late and I’m going to bed._

With a sigh, Eren nods to himself. It was late. He should be going to bed soon too.

_Eren [12:06A.M]: ok I should go to bed too. We’re gonna hang out tomorrow right?_

Levi’s reply comes quickly.

_Levi [12:06A.M]: Of course. Good night._

And then a second.

_Levi [12:07A.M]: Love you._

Eren smiles.

_Eren [12:08A.M]: Love you too <3_

He sets his phone to the side and curls up beneath his blanket, the smile remaining on his face. It takes him all but ten seconds to fall asleep with the thought _why did add that stupid little heart thing oh my god._

-

_December 27 th_

Levi had picked him up at eleven o’clock the next morning. Grisha had gone out to spend the day with a few of his own friends and Mikasa had invited her friends over.

He had forgotten how close the group of girls was. He knew Mikasa had friends, but she had been spending much if not all of her time with Annie for the past few months. He lingers in the hallway to watch the five of them. It had been a while since he had seen them—he had no classes with Krista, Ymir was a year ahead of him, and Sasha was only in his math class, which he already struggled in enough, he didn’t need her talking to him the whole class.

After Ymir decided to point out that he was staring at them and if he looked at Krista any longer, she would punch him in the throat, he looked away. Sasha asked him where he’s going and in turn he told her that he had plans. He heard the girls giggle when he headed out the door because Mikasa had said something along the lines of “Oh, he’s got a date with his boyfriend.” 

Now he was in Levi’s car and his black haired boyfriend had his hand out between the two seats.

“What?” Eren asks finally, acknowledging that Levi’s hand had been out the entire time Eren had been in the car.

“Hold my hand, idiot.” Levi replies. He shoots Eren a sideways glance then he looks forward again.

“Isn’t that dangerous?” Eren takes his hand anyway, their fingers intertwining.

Levi squeezes his hand and Eren notices his grip on the steering wheel tighten as well. “We’re almost to there, like three minutes. But if you want to let go of my hand, go ahead.”

Eren doesn’t. “I’m just sayin’, you don’t wanna hit anyone, do you?”

Levi can feel the teen smiling and he rolls his eyes. “Did I hit you with my car? No. Did I try to hit you with my car? No. Did you run out in front of my car like an idiot? Yes. Are you in a car with someone who had nearly hit you? Yes. So what does that say about you?”

A warm feeling bubbles up in his stomach and Eren lets out a laugh that could be considered a giggle. “Well it could mean that I love you.”

“Or that you’re crazy.”

“For you.” Eren hums. The car grows silent and he realizes that was the cheesiest, stupidest thing he could have ever said to Levi. “I am so sorry. That was dumb.”

His boyfriend says nothing for a while and Eren feels like the biggest idiot the world has ever known. But Levi is still holding his hand, so maybe it wasn’t as bad as he thought it was.

“You’re such an idiot.” Levi finally says as his car drives over a bumpy patch over to the side of the road, lower than the slope of the road itself.

Eren looks at him as he releases his hand and Levi turns and pulls his key from the ignition. He watched Levi get out of the car and open the door on his side to the backseat to pull out a cooler that Eren hadn’t noticed when entering the car before.

Levi looked at him before shutting the door. “Well get out,” He grins.

Eren unbuckles his seatbelt and gets out of the car. The sun was out and was shining down on them, but it wasn’t warm enough to remove their jackets. It wasn’t cold enough that they would freeze for being out there, though. There was still snow on the side of the road, and some that he could see piled up on the bridges sides—

And then he recognized where he was. Looking down, he saw the light colored dirt that mixed with sand the closer to the underside of the highway’s bridge that you got. Levi was already heading that way, with a checkered blanket under one arm, and his cooler in the opposite hand.

Eren’s heart fluttered and his cheeks flushed a red to match his sister’s favorite winter scarf. He runs after Levi and when the man sets the cooler down under the shade of the highway bridge, he helps him set the blanket down.

“A picnic,” Eren hums, taking a seat on the blanket. Levi settles beside him and pulls the cooler over to them. “How cliché.”

“Fuck you,” Levi replies. He pulls out two Coke’s and shoves one in Eren’s hands. “I thought it would be nice since we haven’t been here in a while.”

“It _is_ nice,” Eren promises. “It’s cute.”

The two sat there, listening to the swishing and swashing of the flowing river against the sandy-bank, sipping their side. Eren leans his head on Levi’s shoulder and they hold hands again, fingers intertwined.

It was cute. Really, really cute.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hoooooooly crap okay this is severely un-beta'd.
> 
> so i'm wrapping it up. slowly, but surely. eventually. There's like four chapters left probably. I said that like eight chapters ago didn't i.
> 
> i don't even know what i'm doing anymore.


	32. Chapter 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hanji and Levi discuss important things while Eren helps Petra decide on a gender neutral baby name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dorks. Nothing but dorks being cute. And Hanji tells a joke that I will never get over because I'm a fucking idiot. Also, being the trash that I am, i have a headcanon that modern!Au Hanji and Eren love Doctor Who and I am going to utilize that headcanon in everything i write if possible. Just a warning.
> 
> Also, this chapter (much like the entire fic) is completely un-beta'd. Okay, read on~

It’s two in the afternoon when Eren and Levi had left their picnic spot and gone to visit Levi’s parents. They didn’t stay long, only there to visit and give late Christmas hugs and birthday kisses. Eren smiled seeing Levi hug his mother and father and how even though they were only there a matter of minutes, it felt they could have stayed for hours.

They’re driving down the road when Levi turns off in the direction of the city. The town they lived in wasn’t really small; it had large buildings and a handful of fancy restaurants, along with a decently sized mall and a movie theater. But in the city, everything was just _better_ in a way that was difficult to explain.

“Where’re we going now?” Eren asks, his eyes following the buildings that they pass.

“Airport.” Levi answers, eyes forward.

“Oh, yeah. You’re exchanging…” The brunet felt a pout coming on but he pushed it back.

“Mhm,” Levi hums. “After that, you and I can do whatever you want.”

“You’ve barely been home the entire time you’ve been back here,” Eren says. “Don’t you want to relax in your apartment?”

“Do you not want to hang out with me?” Levi didn’t look away from the road longer than a small glance in Eren’s direction. “Because I can take you home after the airport—”

“No, no!” Eren’s whine is defensive which grants him half a grin from his boyfriend. “I just thought you’d like to be home for a while before you go back to school in like a week. Being there just to sleep isn’t really enough. Or it might be, I don’t know—you’re kinda weird about relaxation.”

Levi rolls his eyes and comes to a stop at the red-light. “So do you want to come over then?”

“If you want me to.” Eren smiles.

“You make things too complicated. If you wanted to come over, you should’ve just said so.”

Levi continued on to the airport and both boys sit silently on the way there. Once arriving, they get out and walk in together. It wasn’t as busy as either had expected, only a few people sitting around and a handful standing in line.

Just as Levi and Eren head toward a line, Levi’s phone rings. He fishes it out of his pocket and upon seeing Hanji’s contact lighting up, he puts the device to his ear.

“It’s awake,” Levi greets her.

“Shut up.” Hanji says through a yawn. “Where are you at? I was gonna make you breakfast when I got uuuuuuup.”

“Hanji it’s two o’clock in the afternoon.” Levi looks over to Eren who was wandering around the airport like a lost child. “I’m at the airport with Eren so we can exchange my and his tickets for ours.”

“Oh…”

“Yeah.”

“Abooooout that…”

Levi quirks an eyebrow and placed a hand on his hip. “What is it, Hanji?”

“Ummm, so I’m thinking about staying here and not going back to France when school starts back up. And um, I was wanting to talk to you about it, which is why I was going to make you breakfast.”

Levi didn’t notice Eren take his hand and lead him toward one of the lines. “What are you going on about? Why don’t you want to go back?”

“Can we talk about this when you get back?” Hanji whined on the other line.

“No, I’m in the airport and I need to know why so I know how much fucking money I’m spending on tickets and god fucking damnit—” Eren squeezes his hand, silently telling him to lower his voice, and being ignored. “—Hanji, what is it?”

“I’ll just tell you when you get back—don’t buy a ticket for me, okay? Okay bye!”

The line went dead and Levi wanted to chuck his phone across the room. She did try his nerves quite a lot, but pulling this little stunt just irked him more than it normally would, had she told him ahead of time.

“Well, fuck…”

“What’s wrong with Hanji?” Eren asks as Levi stuffs his phone back into his pocket. They step forward in line.

“For whatever reason, the four-eyes doesn’t want to go back to France with me. She told me not to buy her a ticket. She won’t tell me why, either.”

Eren is silent for a while, up until Levi has returned the two tickets and purchased a single ticket for the following week. The two are halfway to the exit when Eren speaks up. “Maybe she wants to start a new.”

“That sounds kind of corny,” Levi remarks as they walk out into the outside. The temperature has dropped, nipping at their faces. The two boys zip their jackets up as they head to Levi’s car. “I mean, we’ve made it halfway through the year, why would she want to quit now?”

The brunet shrugs. “She didn’t say she was quitting, did she?”

“No, but… it’s what it seems like.”

Once both of them are inside the car and buckled, Levi starts the car and they both blow on their hands, putting them against the hot air before the black haired male begins driving. “We should go to your place so you can talk to her then.”

“I can talk to her about it later. This is the time I’m using to spend with you before I have to go back.”

Fold his arms, Eren looks at his boyfriend. “You have an entire week to spend with just me alone. And Hanji is your friend, so it’s your job to look after her.”

Levi glowers at the road ahead and sighs. “You’re going to be bored.”

Eren shrugs. “That’s not really important.”

Levi silently complies after a while and begins heading home.

-

“Knock knock.”

Petra looked up from the baby-name book she was reading. Hanji had invited her over to Levi’s apartment not very long after she called him. She made hot chocolate for girl-talk which quickly turned into twenty-six minutes on how Petra is actually a natural blond and why she dyes her hair. “Who’s there?”

“Doctor.”

“Doctor who?”

“Actually, it’s just the Doctor.”

Hanji laughed loudly. Petra arched a brow in confusion, indicating she didn’t understand the joke. She waited for Hanji to explain the punch line so she could laugh too, but when the brunette caught her breath and quieted down, she only smiled.

“I… don’t get it?” Petra admitted.

“You don’t? …Oh.” Hanji pouted. “It’s a Doctor Who joke. It’s like, um… okay, so his name isn’t _really_ ‘Doctor _Who’_ , he only goes by ‘The Doctor’ or ‘Doctor’ and… okay, so like, he… wow this joke is really hard to explain.”

Petra blinked and gave the brunette a slow nod. “Aaaaaalright then… Ha. Ha ha…?”

“Don’t humor me,” Hanji pouted. “Nobody around here watches Doctor Who and that makes me sad.”

“Actually, I’m pretty sure Eren watches it,” Petra said, returning to the book in her lap.

“Really?” Hanji smiled.

Petra shrugged. “I think so. I remember him talking about it when I was waiting a table for him and his friends back during my shift last summer. And then once when he was with Levi he was talking about it a lot.”

“Yay, that makes me happy. So,” She leaned sideways, getting a good look at the page Petra was on. “See anything you like?”

The ginger nodded. “I really like the names Lillian, Angelina, and Jennifer for girls. And for boys I’ve always liked the names Christopher and James.”

“And what’s Auruo’s last name?” Hanji asked.

“Bossard.” Petra replied.

“Lillian Bossard sounds cute. Christopher Bossard, too.”

Petra’s eyes light up at a name. “Oh, this sounds pretty. What do you think of Lillian Cassandra Bossard?”

Hanji’s eyes dart off the page and to Petra’s face. “Not Cassandra.”

The ginger pouted. “Does it not sound good?”

“If you like bitchy skin trampolines, sure.” Hanji pauses. “Okay, that was mean. It sounds cute, ignore what I said.”

“Bitchy skin trampolines…”

“Yeah.”

The two girls silently returned to the name-book. They were silent up until the apartment door clicked and opened, revealing Levi and Eren. Eren shut the door behind them as Levi unzipped and removed his own jacket, Eren following, until both jackets hung on the hook beside the door.

“Hi,” Petra called from the couch without looking up from the book.

“Yo,” Hanji half-turned to watch the two head to the kitchen.

“Hey,” Levi replied, halfway to the kitchen. He figured Petra would be over to hang out with Hanji. He began making himself a hot pot of coffee—Levi wasn’t a big fan of hot coco—while Eren stole what was left of the hot chocolate.

“Eren!” Hanji gasped, nearly pouncing on the boy when he approached. “Do you like Doctor Who?”

She heard Levi groan from the kitchen.

Eren sat against the arm of the couch and took a sip of his hot chocolate. “Are bowties cool?”

“Yay!” Hanji cheered and moved over to sit closer to Eren. “Who’s your favorite Doctor?”

“Eleven,”

Levi sat in the new space between Hanji and Petra. “Now they’re going to bond over it. Fuck.”

“Sorry,” Petra smiled apologetically. “My bad.”

“Well, I like Nine, and Ten, and Eleven. Eleven was my first Doctor, though.” Eren continued.

“Eleven’s mine too, though I gotta say Nine doesn’t get enough recognition and Ten’s was heartbreaking.”

“Hold the fuck up,” Levi smacked Hanji’s arm. “You don’t get to talk about Doctor Whoever until you tell me why you don’t wanna go back to France.”

“It’s _Who_ , Levi.” Hanji corrected.

“I know what it fucking is. I was trying to—no, don’t change the subject. Tell me why.”

Hanji silently looked toward the table and stared at her half-empty mug. Her hands sat at her knees, fingers gently drumming against them while she thought over her answer. “There’s a few reasons, actually.”

“And they are?”

“Um… Levi, would you like me and Eren to leave so you guys could talk about this privately?”

Levi shrugged. Petra and Eren took it as a ‘yes’ and the two silently went out into the hall. Hanji followed them with her eyes until the door shut, and she leaned back against the couch. “Levi, it really doesn’t matter why I don’t—”

“It does matter.”

The brunette sighed and looked at him. “Alright, fine. Part of the reason I went to France in the first place is because Mike encouraged me to go study abroad because it would be fun. And it was, but I did it because I thought that’s what he wanted me to. I mean, like, it was my idea at first, but I didn’t need to go to France to study how to be a fucking doctor, or a scientist, a pharmacist, a psychologist, or one of the other ten trillion things I want to do with my life because I could study all of those things right here at home.

“Secondly, it takes a lot of money to live over there, since I don’t live in a dorm, and all of the double and single dorms are taken up, except for yours but I don’t think even the French want a guy and a girl sharing a dorm. And I’m sure you wouldn’t like it either because I’m messy as fuck and you would probably make me bathe in bleach or something—okay maybe not because that’s extremely dangerous, but you know what I mean. And the apartment I lived in keeps getting more and more expensive and I need the money I spend on that place for food and books and clothes and your expensive-ass coffee taste.”

“Why didn’t you tell me—”

“I’m not done. Next, I didn’t have barely any time to get a job on or off campus to make any extra cash other than what Mike would send me, which, by the way, is no longer an option if you couldn’t tell.

“I can finish my classes online without having to go all the way back across the ocean and hanging around a different country for four and a half months, for, like, free, and lastly, I can get a job to pay for things so I don’t have to bum money off of anyone anymore. Do you get it now?”

He nodded slowly. “I wish you would have told me about the money issue. I wouldn’t have made you buy me coffee three times a day if you had.”

“You were pissed off and I didn’t think it mattered…” She shrugged.

“But why are you just telling me about it now? I’m pretty sure I’ve forgiven you at this point, but you still kept it.”

“I don’t want you to pity me because I’m poor and gross.”

Levi rolled his eyes and smacked her on the arm again. She looked away. “You’re not gross.”

“I’m pretty gross.” Hanji replied.

“Why don’t you ask your parents for financial support?”

She sighed. “I already told you that they didn’t really care for the idea of me going in the first place. It was all Mike. And obviously it would be pretty shitty of me to ask him to keep helping me financially since we broke up.”

“Oh…” Levi finally leaned back to sit beside her. The two of them sat silently, thinking over the next thing to say.

-

“David would be a nice name for a little boy,”

Eren and Petra stand against the wall beside Levi’s door, looking through the name book. The name he offered appeared out of the blue considering they were at the ‘S’ names.

“David? Hmm… David Bossard…” Petra smiled. “I like that. But what about a girl?”

“Rose. Donna. Martha. Amy. Clara. Melody.”

Petra looked up from the book and shot Eren a look. “Okay are those names from Doctor Who because you need to stop it and be serious if you’re going to offer names.”

He half-smiled. “Okay, sorry, sorry. Umm… what about a gender neutral name? Like, that way it’ll work for whatever you have, if you like it.”

“Well…” Petra thought over it. “I’ve always liked the name Dakota… I’m pretty sure that’s neutral.”

“It has a nice ring to it,” Eren smiled. “Hey, wanna know something while we’re on the subject?”

The ginger smiled. “Sure.”

“When my mom was pregnant with me, the doctors told her they were ninety-five percent positive I was going to be a girl, so my name was supposed to be Erin with an ‘I’. My name was going to be Erin Cassidy Jaeger.”

Petra giggled. “That’s an adorable name.”

“Yeah, I guess. They didn’t know I was going to be a boy until I was actually born. And my dad told me the doctor was like ‘oh, uh, it’s a boy’. My mom was kind of mad at first because she had been so hard-set on the name, but she got over it.”

“So what’s your middle name then?”

“It’s embarrassing… but it’s still Cassidy. Dad told me he wanted it to be Sage, but mom said ‘Eren Sage Jaeger’ doesn’t have the same pretty sound to it as ‘Eren Cassidy’. I got dirt stuffed in my mouth in first grade for having a girl’s middle name so I ended up telling everyone it was Sage after that.”

Petra didn’t want to laugh, but she did. “Oh my—I’m sorry, I’m not laughing that you got forced to eat dirt, it’s just—I’m sorry. That’s still an adorable name, though.” She bit the inside of her cheek and looked down at the book again. “Hmm… what do you think about Dakota Sage?”

“I like that.”

-

“You know,” Levi finally said after a few minutes. “I could loan you the money. If you do decide you want to go back before the week is up.”

“I really don’t,” Hanji sighed. “I loved it, and I loved making friends with Ilse and Rene and of course you, but… I really don’t wanna go back.” She bit her lip. “Shit.”

Levi looked at her. “Hm?”

“So, I just realized my parents are going to be totally thrilled with the fact that I’m not going back. They weren’t happy with me going and now they’re gonna be all like ‘you gave up too quickly’. Does… does it look like I’m giving up?”

“Depending on how you look at it, it could.” Levi said. “I don’t think it does, since you have valid reasons for not wanting to go back. But, it’s not like you have to tell them.”

“I have to tell them if I’m gonna live with them again.” She said. “Up until France, I’ve never lived out of the house. Well, right now and the past week when I was at Mike’s, but you know what I mean.”

Without thinking, the words flew out of Levi’s mouth. “You can stay here if you want.”

It took a moment to register, but Hanji’s eyes lit up and her lips parted as she turned to look at the man beside her. “What? Really?”

He needed a moment to think it over.

He didn’t really mind letting her stay there. It could actually do a lot of good. Not only could she apartment-sit in the place of Petra, but she could help Petra out while the ginger was home and Auruo was at work. She could even get a job filling in for Petra at Ral’s. She could also bond with Eren, which as much as it seemed like he loathed the idea most of the time, it was really important to him that they did.

The fact that he had pieced all of that together in his head was a bit embarrassing. He never thought that Hanji would become such an important part of his life, especially not from the circumstances that they met from, or that she would manage to mesh herself in with three of the people he cares for most.

She and Erwin were close from the day the blond had picked them up from the airport. She seemed to be getting along very well with Petra, which was good considering Petra’s four best friends since she was a little girl had all been older boys. And lastly, she and Eren were forming a bond, which meant a lot to him. He didn’t think they would be able to because of the phone incident, but he was pleasantly surprised.

And now, he was going to let this messy, loud, incredibly nosey woman stay in his apartment while he left for almost five months. How had she managed to sneak into his life and become one of the most important people in it, he had no idea. He thought about it. She weaseled her way in, like Eren.

He smiled. Hanji stared at the smile. It didn’t falter, twitch, or turn into a smirk or some type of distorted sneer. It was the first legitimate smile she had ever seen him make that didn’t only last half a second.

“Yeah. Really.”

“Really?” She repeated in disbelief.

“ _Yes_ , Hanji. Really.”

She threw her arms around him, which he had expected. “Oh my god, thank you. Thank you thank you thank—”

“I have three conditions.”

“—you. Um… okay, of course. What are they?” She didn’t stop hugging him.

“Keep the place clean. Please.”

Hanji laughed. “I know that was going to be one of them.”

“Two, try to get a job. Wow, the way I said that sounded rude, but you know. I’m sure if you asked, Petra could pull some strings and get you a job at Ral’s.”

“How much do I need to set back for a month here?” She asked.

Levi shook his head. “No, don’t worry about the apartment. I’ve got that covered in savings and Erwin’s always around to help out. I want you to have money for yourself.”

“Levi…”

He cleared his throat. “Don’t you ‘Levi’ me, treat yo self.”

“Oh my god.” Hanji laughed

“I know what I said. And my third condition is that, and I’m dead serious when I say this, do not, under any circumstances, change my Wi-Fi password.”

“I don’t even know what it is.”

“Good. Anyway, do you agree to my conditions?”

“I do.”

He smiled again. “Well then I hope you enjoy your stay.”

Hanji gave him a final squeeze and sat back down.

“I guess I should tell Eren and Petra they can come back in now.” Levi was halfway to his feet.

“No, no I got it.” Hanji hummed. Levi sat back down. Hanji didn’t move. “EREEEEN, PETRAAA, YOU GUYS CAN COME BACK IN NOW!”

Levi blinked twice and placed the palm of his hand to his ear. “Ow.”

Petra and Eren reentered the apartment as Hanji laughed. “Sorry,” She smiled.

“Eren helped me decide on a baby name,” Petra said as she and Eren took their places on the couch where they had been before. She placed her hand on her belly. “Dakota Sage.”

“I like that.” Levi said.

“ _Fantastic_.” Hanji grinned, elbowing Eren. The teen laughed.

It wasn’t hard after that to get on the discussion of baby names that they all liked. Hanji named off several weird but pleasant sounding names that she had always liked, Petra contributing greatly and Levi adding his two cents in here and there with a “a child with that name would get his ass kicked” or a “are you trying to name a porn-star or your pet cat?”.

Eren added a few things in occasionally, but kept getting distracted by the thought of babies in general. He glanced at Levi just in time to see the man grin and his heart fluttered inside of his chest. _You’d be a good dad,_ he thought. _I wonder if you’d like the name Carla._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Eren Cassidy Jaeger. Just give that a minute to sink in. Eren Cassidy Jaeger.-
> 
> Hanji and Levi are my brOTP, as I've mentioned, and their friendship is like 18.9% of what keeps me going. Like, if you haven't been able to tell before, the two of them are really important to me. Anyway, we're gonna get back to the EreRi after this chapter.
> 
> Also..If your name is Cassandra, I am deeply sorry if I offended you.


	33. Chapter 33

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi makes a breakthrough. 
> 
> This chapter is made up of the rest of their week together and Levi's leave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can i get a whoop-whoop for a 6k chapter
> 
> //Sometimes i sit awake at night wondering if i'll ever finish this. the answer is fucking yes. One more to go.

On the 28th, Grisha had told Eren to invite Levi over for dinner. Hanji had asked if she could tag along to which Levi answered with ‘maybe next time’.

Grisha and Levi talked after dinner while Eren and Mikasa sat in the living room and watched a movie. Eren could hear everything the two were saying, his heart pounding anxiously through each word, because Grisha was giving Levi the _relationship_ talk. The “ _what are your intentions with my daughter”_ talk was taken to an entirely new and more awkward level now that it was altered to fit around Eren.

That night ended with Levi falling asleep on the Jaeger’s couch, Eren passed out beside him, their hands held tightly together. When Levi later woke up at two in the morning at the sound of the TV still going, he noticed a blanket was draped over the two of them. He questioned Mikasa about it the following morning when she had passed them on her way to the kitchen, but she told him she had nothing to do with it.

Since Levi had spent the night at the Jaeger’s house on accident, he wondered if Hanji had somehow managed to set his apartment on fire but he had to trust she didn’t long enough to convince Grisha that the Jaeger’s should come over and eat dinner at _his_. He said it was his way of apologizing for passing out on the couch (and also thanking him for the blanket, though neither of them brought that up), but Grisha told him it wasn’t any problem. Regardless, Levi convinced the man that they should come over anyway.

And thank god Hanji hadn’t made a mess of the apartment while he was gone. There was a pot, a plate, and a fork in the sink, but Hanji was busy scraping them clean when Levi had gotten home and announced they would be having guests. He ended up vacuuming the entire apartment even though Grisha would only see his living room and kitchen (and probably bathroom), but he didn’t care. Hanji helped him decide on what to make.

Levi ended up with a houseful of people. Not just the Jaegers, but Petra and Auruo hung around for a while thanks to Hanji—not that Levi minded—and Hanji had invited Erwin, too. It was a bit less awkward having so many of his friends around during dinner, as though it were a casual gathering and not an _impress the boyfriend’s father_ dinner. He’d thank Hanji for that later.

Dinner went well that night, too. Mikasa (like Grisha) had never been in Levi’s apartment. Eren had told her at least a million times what a clean-freak Levi was, but she hadn’t ever believed him up until that night. If she had to be honest, she was kind of surprised.

The night ended with Petra and Auruo leaving first, followed by Erwin a short time after, leaving Levi with Hanji and the Jaeger’s. It was passing 9 when Grisha said it was about time that they left, and he thanked Levi for dinner. Eren made his father and Mikasa wait in the hallway for ten minutes while he kissed Levi all over his face and thanked him for dinner. Levi had to pry the teen off of him and threaten not to let him leave at all if he kept kissing him like he was. Hanji heard that from the kitchen and laughed while Eren flushed and gave the man a final kiss before bidding him and Hanji a goodbye and leaving.

At about ten the same night, Grisha placed an arm around his son’s shoulder and Eren knew that even without the words that his father approved of Levi. Actual approval, not like when he first introduced them, because that had still been built on awkwardness and what remained of Eren’s anger at the time, whereas this time around was nice. Just nice.

On the 30th, Hanji was up before Levi and had breakfast ready for him when he got up. They ate in the dining room because “you have a thing with your couch and I don’t want to die today, even if you say it’s okay to eat over there”. She asked him if she could borrow his car because she had errands she needed to run and she didn’t want to bother Petra all day. Levi agreed and once she left, he showered and called Eren.

The teen came over around noon and Eren made Levi watch two episodes of Doctor Who in hopes that he would love it. Levi’s response was “eh”, to which Eren got a bit frustrated but accepted that Levi wasn’t a fan. _Yet_.

Eren explained that Mikasa had dropped him off so neither of them had any means of transportation until Hanji or Mikasa came back. He said it in a way that didn’t really say _you’re stuck with me_ but rather _we could fuck around since we’re stuck here_ , to which Levi promptly took the teen to his bedroom.

It was their second time and Eren still wasn’t quite used to how it felt, but the both of them still enjoyed it a lot. Skin on skin, Levi’s mouth on his, Eren’s hands desperately clawing into Levi’s bed sheets and then his boyfriend’s shoulders, anything he could grab onto to ride out the first minute of pain that was followed by pleasure.

Eren practically melted after asking Levi to go faster and having his wish granted. With Levi’s palm still slick from the preparation and after, his fingers wrapped around Eren’s cock while the teen whined and moaned like a bitch. Eren was loud, and Levi didn’t give a fuck (ha) if anyone could hear him.

The brunet’s finish was messy as it had been the first time, but twice as embarrassing. He had jumped slightly when Levi had tapped his prostate at the same time he did one particularly wonderful tug on his cock, and hit his elbow against Levi’s dresser which made it rattle and caused the tiny bottle of lube to fall over. He wasn’t sure if Levi was laughing or seething after he finished inside of Eren and the teen didn’t get the chance to ask before Levi gave him a hard kiss to the lips.

And Eren may or may not have fallen asleep for an hour. He did. When he woke up, he noticed the bed was made and there was a towel under his ass. He sat up just as Levi walked into the room, hair damp and fully dressed. Before Eren could say anything Levi was crawling over top of him and kissing him again. Eren was later told he was a heavy sleeper and Levi changed his sheets and everything while Eren was out. It made the teen laugh a little.

After Eren took a shower, he walked into the living room to see Hanji walk in with two grocery bags on each arm and two in each hand, Levi following behind her with the same amount. He helped them transport the bags to the kitchen and assisted in putting them away.

It wasn’t until 7 when Levi took Eren home that night. Mikasa and Eren’s car wasn’t in the driveway so Eren deduced she was at Annie’s house. He leaned over the middle console to kiss Levi, and the black haired male kissed back. Eren felt Levi’s hand find its way to the back of his neck and slide up through his hair before fingers curled around a handful and Levi jerked Eren’s head back. Eren’s pouting lips were left with another small kiss and a smile before they exchanged goodbyes and I love yous and Eren got out of the car.

When Levi got home, Hanji was making store-bought lasagna. They talked for a while and Hanji asked what he had planned for New Years Eve. He shrugged and thought about it. He could go see his parents. And then he smiled. For the first time in eight years he could spend a holiday with his parents. He ended up calling them to see if they had anything planned, to which they said no and promptly asked if he wanted to come over and celebrate with them. He asked if he could bring a friend.

On the 31st, Eren told Levi that Grisha wanted him and Mikasa home to spend the holiday with him since he had barely seen either of them in the past two weeks. They had their New Years kiss early, at exactly noon. He then wished Grisha and Mikasa a happy holiday before giving Eren a quick goodbye kiss and heading home.

Levi was excited, like a child on Christmas (which was funny to him), as he got out of the car and went inside. He noticed Rico was on the phone with an annoyed expression, while Moblit was talking to a woman whose child was sitting at her feet and playing with a tiny race car. When Rico gave her infamous wave to Levi and Moblit flashed him a small smile before returning to his conversation with the woman, Levi got in the elevator.

His thoughts roamed to the woman with the child and he began to think about Petra being pregnant. Levi folded his arms and leaned against the wall of the elevator as it went up. Petra Ral, the girl he had known since grade school, the girl he had beat Nile Dawk up for, the first girl he had ever kissed, was pregnant with the child of one of his best friends.

Then he thought about the name Eren had helped her pick for the baby. It was cute. Levi had never really thought about children before, but the idea of a baby running around was suddenly really cute. He went over the motions in his head, how he would probably offer to watch baby Dakota for Petra when she and Auruo needed a break, and he thought about how messy babies were, and how tiny they were and how careful you have to be with them.

He didn’t notice he was on his floor until the doors were about to close and he quickly stepped out. While walking back to his apartment, he thought about how baby Dakota would look. It would be a natural blond since Petra and Auruo both had blond hair, and it would have brown eyes. And it would be small most of its life, like Petra, and probably have a growth spurt to surpass both Levi and Petra both in height. The thought made him breathe out a small laugh as he stepped up to his apartment and unlocked the door.

A heavily sweet aroma wafted out of the apartment when he opened the door and he saw Petra and Hanji dancing around the kitchen. He noticed the cake sitting on his counter. When he shut the door behind him, both girls turned to greet him with smiles and a bit of cake batter on their lips.

Hanji explained that since he was taking her to his parent’s house to celebrate New Years, she wanted to bring something along, and Petra suggested a cake. Petra admitted that it wasn’t only because she thought it would be a nice idea, but she was craving chocolate cake batter really, really badly. He took note to the glass bowl with chocolate batter remnants smeared and sticking to the inside.

The two girls decorated the cake while Levi cleaned up their mess and secretly swiped his finger into what was left of the batter and licked it off his finger. He’d never tell anyone, but he was a sucker for chocolate cake.

When it was time to leave for his parents’, Petra left to get ready for her and Auruo’s date, and Hanji and Levi filed downstairs to the lobby. There was hoard of people crowding around the front desk, shouting and complaining about something. Levi and Hanji watched as Moblit desperately tried to quiet them down.

“They’re going to eat him alive!” Hanji had said. “We need to help him.”

Levi said nothing, because he knew how situations like this were handled, having lived here for so long. He only shook his head and pointed toward a door that lead to a room only Rico, Moblit, and other people that worked within the apartment complex were allowed in. Rico stepped out with her brows furrowed and she moved in behind the desk, then climbed up the surface with an air-horn in her hand. She pressed down and the horn sounded, echoing through the lobby, and several people in the crowd shouted, all of them covering their ears, including Hanji and Levi.

Rico yelled at everyone to basically shut the fuck up and come up one at a time or she would blow the horn again, and nobody wanted that. Moblit shot a look over to Levi and Hanji, both of which gave him a small wave before leaving the lobby.

The ride to Levi’s parents’ house was shorter than normal, mostly because Hanji kept talking about how badass Rico looked coming out of the room with the air-horn. How badass can someone with an air-horn look? Apparently “hella”.

Introducing Hanji to Levi’s parents was interesting to say the least, since Hanji was listing off the similarities between Levi and the both of them. For a while she went on and on, but then she realized she was rambling, apologized, and offered up the cake she and Petra had made.

Counting down to the New Year started out quietly until Levi’s mom stood up and threw her fist into the air, shouting something in French that Hanji was the first to understand and laugh. Levi and his father snorted a moment later and when the ball dropped to zero and the woman in Time Square along with the crowd behind her screamed “HAPPY NEW YEAR!” so did the four of them.

Levi’s phone vibrated in his pocket and he opened it to see a picture message of Eren wearing blue shutter-shades and a stretched out party blower in his mouth that read out HAPPY NEW YEAR in bright yellow letters, giving two thumbs up. The caption that followed was “Mikasa took the picture, Happy new year! Love you (:”

He smiled at the picture and saved it to his phone as Hanji and his mother cut the cake up.

They left at about 1:20 a.m. and entered the complex to see Moblit still sitting at the desk with a can of Dr. Pepper and Rico’s air-horn. He had confetti in his hair and his eyes were trained on the TV at the far corner of the lobby, watching an infomercial for a washcloth. Hanji wandered over to the desk while Levi waited for the elevator and he heard the brunette say something to get his attention.

Moblit eyes seemed to brighten at the gentle way she spoke to him before she offered him a piece of cake, which he took happily. Hanji told Levi to go up without her and she’d be up in a little while.

Hanji didn’t knock on the door until 2. Levi had been sitting on the couch waiting for her so she wouldn’t be stuck in the hall all night. She told him that she made a new friend, and then she went to the guest bedroom to pass out for the night.

He texted Eren back after that with “Happy new year. I love you too. And you look like a dork”, and then went to bed himself.

On the 1st of January, Levi woke up to being laid on. He opened his eyes to see Eren laying on top of him, his elbows on either side of Levi’s face so his hands could prop his chin up. Eren grinned and kissed Levi on the chin, restraining from kissing him on the lips because morning-breathe kisses don’t fly well with Levi (or anyone).

Eren told him that he was going to be busy on the 2nd, so he wanted to bother him as much as he could. Levi blinked a few times and pushed Eren off of him, waiting to ask how he got in after he brushed his teeth and got dressed. Oh, of course. Hanji let him in. Duh.

The teen had brought Levi a blueberry muffin, which the man dug into because blueberry muffins are, to quote his Christmas present from Hanji, “hella fab”. He noticed that said brunette was not in the apartment, to which Eren explained that she said she was on her way to the lobby when he had showed up. Levi only grinned. Good. She had made friends with Moblit. It got her out of his hair. And it would do her some good to be sociable with other people.

Levi admitted to having not really wanted to do anything that day and let it be a lazy day, so the two of them just cuddled on the couch and watched The Big Bang Theory and whatever else came on after it. They weren’t really watching it though; Levi had been tracing circles beneath Eren’s shirt and against his hipbone for what seemed like an hour, distracting him from the TV, until finally he pushed himself off of Levi and pressed their lips together.

The older male’s hands held Eren’s hips in place while Eren wrapped his arms around Levi’s neck and tried to push against him. His efforts were futile, as Levi had him in a tight hold to keep him from moving from where he was.

They shamelessly made out on the couch for half an hour, hands grazing and touching and gripping all along each other’s’ bodies, teeth nipping at lips, tongues dancing around both of their mouths and occasionally they would pull away to breathe.

Eren flattered Levi by saying he had forgotten how fucking great it was to make out with him. Levi replied by saying he’d kiss him forever if he could. They both laughed at how corny the line was, but the sweet sentiment that was embedded in the sentence was enough to have them leaning in again.

They didn’t hear the door being unlocked, or the door being opened, or Hanji walking in, or the door shutting. They didn’t acknowledge her existence until she had cleared her throat and asked them to make room on the couch. Eren quickly got off of Levi and sat between the two, Levi snorted, and Hanji draped an arm over the teen’s shoulder to confess she enjoyed the show. Levi told her not to get a lady-boner over it. She said she made no promises. Eren blushed furiously.

After Eren left, Hanji took up his spot on the couch and lounged, laying her feet on Levi’s lap. He pushed them off quickly and ignored them when she moved them back. The rest of the night was spent with Levi texting Eren after the teen got home and Hanji trying to get him to watch _Rise of the Guardians_ with her.

Since Eren wouldn’t be around on the 2nd, Levi took it as his day to talk to Petra. He made Hanji vacuum the apartment while he was gone.

With Eren, the teen had decided to spend the day with Armin, Jean, Annie, Mikasa, _Springles,_ and Historia and Ymir. They all sat around at Jean’s house and played a game of _Cards Against Humanity_ which Jean had not so shockingly bought online less than a month ago. Historia won the first game, to everyone’s surprise, taking victory with cards such as “the biggest, blackest dick” (because really, you can’t go wrong with that card) and “nipple blades”. Annie won the second game, and Eren barely won the third.

Afterward, they watched the pirated version on _Frozen_ on Jean’s laptop, courtesy of Ymir. It was the one with subtitles for the song. They all openly sang every song, Armin and Eren doing a duet at the end of Let It Go and sounding like dying cats in the process while the other seven laughed at their attempt. Then Jean was dubbed as “Sven” and went from Horse-face to Reindeer-face in less than an hour. He wasn’t pleased until Armin serenaded him with Reindeers Are Better Than People.

While that was going on, Petra and Levi reminisced about the past. She brought up the time he, she, and Erwin jammed out to Bohemian Rhapsody the night before Erwin moved out of the apartment, and he added that they broke two plates in the process and it was kind of hilarious.

Petra smiled. “I miss those days.”

“I do too.” Levi agreed, smiling back.

Levi ended up eating over at Petra and Auruo’s (of course inviting Hanji), and since nobody felt like cooking they ordered pizza.

The night concluded on Eren’s side with him sleeping over at Jean’s with Armin and Connie, and the girls going to Historia’s for the first time in forever.

Once Levi and Hanji left Petra’s, they sat together on the couch and Levi looked on the guide for something to watch when he heard Hanji sniffle. He turned to her and saw her eyes were watering.

“Why are you crying? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” She said.

“Don’t lie to me.” Levi glared.

Hanji’s lips curved upward into a small smile as she turned to face him. “Nothing is _wrong_. I’m… happy.” Levi arched an eyebrow and Hanji breathed out a laugh. “Just really happy. That I met you. And that you let me meet everyone else.”

Levi furrowed his brows and muted the TV. “So you cry?”

“They’re happy tears. Don’t tell me you’ve never been so happy you cried before?” Levi didn’t answer. “I’ll bet you have. Anyway… don’t worry about it, I’m just—”

“What are you so happy about?” He asked. He was genuinely confused.

“It’s kind of stupid,” She laughed. “I’m happy because everyone else is happy. Petra, Auruo, _you_ , Eren, everyone around here is just happy, and it literally overjoys me.”

The shorter male snorted. “I can see that.”

“Like…” Hanji sighed, still smiling. “Those two across the hall, they’re so happy and in love and excited for their baby, and they’re so friendly and nice.

“And Moblit is such a sweet guy—have you ever talked to him more than to just say ‘hi’? He’s so gentle and awkward and he can’t yell at people, and he told me that Rico had to blow the air-horn like five times after we left and that she was going smack some lady in the face, and he started laughing when he was telling me, and oh my god his laugh is one of those that makes other people laugh, and—”

“Breathe, Hanji, your face is turning blue.”

The brunette laughed and wiped her eyes. “And then Eren. He’s just so adorable and happy when he’s around you. And you’re like a whole other person when you’re around him… and it just makes me so happy. Everyone’s happiness is rubbing off on me.”

Levi half-smiled. “Well, good. But, to be fair, Moblit is paid to be nice. And Petra and Auruo are so stupidly in love that anything they do seems happy.”

That made Hanji pause. She eyed Levi closely for a moment and then smiled. It wasn’t a big smile, not the regular HELLO MY NAME IS HANJI smile that she held so often. It was soft and kind of sisterly in a way. “And what about you?”

“What? Uh, yeah. Sure, I guess I’m happy.” Levi shrugged.

“Good, but that’s not what I was asking.” Levi cocked his head to the side and Hanji wiped her eyes again. “Are _you_ stupidly in love? With Eren?”

The question caught him off guard. He loved Eren, yes. He knew he did. He loved him a lot. And the brat was without a doubt head over heels for him, too. “Yeah.”

Hanji’s brown eyes locked on his own grey-blue ones. “Are you _stupidly_ in love, though? Like Petra and Auruo?”

“Yes, Hanji.” He looked away.

“ _No_.” She said quickly, pulling her legs up onto the couch and sitting up on her knees. She leaned over to grab his face and make him look at her. “So stupidly in love that at this very moment, you would rather be with him? That in any moment, you want to be with him? That it hurts your heart when you’re not?”

“Why do you keep asking me when the answer every god damn time is going to be yes?” Levi raised his voice. “Yes, Hanji, _yes._ ”

As simple a statement that it was, it didn’t look like it was making any sense to her. Hanji’s brows pulled down and moved her hands down to his shoulders. She squeezed them tightly and spoke in a low voice. “But _do_ you _love_ him.”

“What part of yes don’t you—” Hanji threw her hands up and practically flew off the couch. She stood in front of him and jerked him up by the collar of his shirt and shook him. “What the fuck are you doing?!” He shouted and pried her hands from his shirt. “Fucking—”

Hanji threw her arms around Levi’s neck and hugged him tightly, practically in his lap, and she laughed again.

“Have you lost your fucking mind?”

She shook her head. “I know what ‘yes’ means. But Levi. Do you love him? Do you love Eren? Are you stupidly and madly and crazily in love with him? Do you really love him?”

“Yes!” Levi shouted. “Yes, Hanji, yes, yes! Fucking yes!”

“Then say it.” She let go of him and stood up straight.

“Say what?” He watched as she moved to sit beside him again. “I love him?”

Hanji grimaced. “Are you asking me?”

“I love him.” Levi said sternly.

“Who?”

“Eren.” Levi growled.

“What about him?” Hanji hummed.

Levi’s eye twitched. “I _love_ him.”

“Who.” It wasn’t a question.

“ _EREN_.” Levi practically hissed.

“What about Eren?!” Hanji cried.

“I FUCKING LOVE HIM, HANJI! I FUCKING LOVE EREN! I LOVE EREN JAEGER! I AM MADLY AND STUPIDLY IN LOVE WITH EREN JAEGER!” Levi yelled, resisting the urge to punch Hanji in the face. He was out of breath from yelling. As he panted, he watched Hanji smile while pulling her legs up onto the couch and hugging them.

“Are you?” She whispered.

Levi stared at her. “Yes. I am in love with him. Why did you make me say it so many times?”

“I don’t think you were all too sure about it yourself. You had to prove it to me just now, didn’t you? You had to yell it to make me understand that you love that green eyed brat. And you do love him. And you proved that and not just to me.”

“…I did.” His lips parted at the realization and he continued to stare at her.

“You did. So tell me again, Levi.” She smiled.

“I… am so _stupidly_ in love with Eren Jaeger.” He whispered.

“Tomorrow is your last day here before you go back,” Hanji’s eyes narrowed. “Prove it to _him_ now.”

-

 

_January 3 rd_

Levi was up a while after Hanji had gone to bed, planning out how he would prove to Eren that he was in love with him. He knew Eren knew that he was, but he wasn’t convinced that the teen knew how much.

Eren woke up to a text from Levi that told him to come over with no explanation. He waited for Jean, Armin, and Connie to be up and eat breakfast with them before he got ready to leave and departed from the Kirschtein household.

He arrived at 11 and was greeted in the lobby by Hanji who was talking to the male receptionist at the front desk. As he got in the elevator, he was trying to figure out what Levi wanted. The teen was a bit anxious to say the least.

When he got out of the elevator, his legs carried him over to Levi’s door and he knocked. The door opened a few moments later and Levi took him by the hand and led him down the hall and back to the elevator.

“Where are we going?” Eren asked as the doors shut.

“I’m taking you on a date. It’s my last day here and I want it to be special.” Levi replied.

Hanji was still in the lobby when they got out of the elevator and Eren didn’t notice the sly wink she sent to Levi. The shorter male took Eren outside to his car but before he let Eren get in on the passenger side, he grabbed him by the front of his coat and pulled him down to kiss him. It was fast but soft, and ended before Eren could close his eyes.

Eren got in the car and Levi got in on the driver side. Both clicked their seatbelts and Levi started the car.

“Where are we going?” Eren questioned again.

“To Ral’s.” Levi answered, trying to hide his smile.

“We’re going the long way…” Eren watched as they approached the movie theater.

There was barely anyone out on the road today, but Eren figured it was because the theater wasn’t open at the moment. Then Levi parked in the middle of the road after making sure nobody was coming, and they sat there for five minutes before he took the car out of park and continued on the long way to Ral’s.

Eren turned to Levi. “What was that about?”

“You’ll see.”

They arrived at Ral’s ten minutes later than they would have if they had gone the other way. Levi didn’t seem to care he wasted any gas as the two walked into the restaurant. Levi waved at Little Ral who greeted them quite loudly. Levi brought Eren to a table by the window where Little Ral took their order. They both got spaghetti. Eren kept asking questions about the special date, which Levi didn’t answer.

After eating, Levi paying and giving Petra’s smaller cousin a very generous tip, the two got back into Levi’s car. They had been there for an hour and a half, which Levi was relieved about. Perfect timing.

He took Eren back to the movie theater that was now open with cars already in the parking lot. Levi took him inside and got snacks and drinks and the works, and dragged the teen into the theater. They sat near the back where they held hands and ate popcorn through the entire movie, and Eren didn’t say a word. Levi wouldn’t let Eren kiss him the whole time.

When the movie was over, Levi took him back to the car and by the time they were halfway to their last destination, Eren had a clue about the theme of the date, but he didn’t say anything. The car came to a halt and Levi got out first. Eren stared up at the highway as he got out of the car and heard Levi shut the back door. He turned and watched as Levi approached him with a blanket under his right arm.

They sat under the bridge on top of the blanket Levi had brought out and the shorter man turned to look at the brunet. “Eren?”

“I get it,” the teen smiled, looking out over the river. “Our firsts.”

Levi smiled and pulled Eren closer to him, finally kissing him after what seemed like hours They laid back on the blanket in each other’s arms, lips pressed together. When Levi pulled away, he nodded. “I would throw you in the river, but it’s too cold for that.”

The teen laughed. “Thank you for caring about my health. Anyway… this was kind of really romantic, my face is so red right now isn’t it?”

“Little bit.”

Eren laughed again and closed his eye, only to open them back up when he felt Levi’s weight pressing down on him. He looked up at his boyfriend and let out a happy sigh as Levi ran one of his hands up the side of Eren’s face then leaned down to kiss him again.

“Eren,” Levi began after pulling away. Green eyes stared up at him. “How long have we been together?”

“Umm…” Eren’s lips pursed and he had to think about it. “Like eight months, almost nine.”

“Right… and how many times have you tried to tell me you love me?” Levi asked.

Cheeks flushing a deeper shade of red, Eren let out a shallow breath. “A lot… since the beginning of August.”

Levi smiled down at the brunet and placed a soft kiss on both his cheeks. “Eren?”

“Yes, Levi?” The boy is flushing furiously at this point.

“Do you love me?”

Staring up at the older man, Eren gave a small smile and nodded. “Of course I do.”

“Then…” Levi leaned down to press his forehead against Eren’s which in turn got the teen to wrap his arms around Levi’s neck. “When I come back from France… would you want to marry me?”

It was like time suddenly stopped and it was just the two of them laying there beneath the highway. There were no sounds of the river sloshing against the support beams, no sounds of cards passing, as though everything except for the two of them had disappeared. Eren could only hear the sound of his own heart pounding up into his ribcage.

“Well you don’t have to cry,” Levi’s gentle voice brought him back into reality, the sounds of the cars and the river coming back to him. A gentle thumb came up to his face to wipe away a tear. When had Eren even started crying?

Finding his voice took a moment. “Yes.” The teen whispered.

“Yes?” Levi repeated.

“Yes!” This time it was screamed. Eren pulled the older man down and mashed their lips together. Levi laughed into the kiss. The teen broke the kiss and stared up at Levi with teary turquoise eyes. “Yes…” It was like the only word he knew. “Yes, yes, yes.”

“You understand this isn’t quite a proposal, right?” Levi asked awkwardly. “Like, not an official one since I don’t have a ring or—”

“So you’ll ask me again when you come back, and the answer will still be yes.” Eren said quickly. He grinned through the tears that he didn’t care were still coming. “It will always be yes.”

-

_January 4 th_

“I’m going to miss you.” Eren says five minutes before Levi is supposed to board. “Call me when you get there, I don’t care how gross the ride was or how badly you want to shower. Please.”

Levi snorts and nods. “Yeah, yeah, I will. Calm down. Don’t act like such a wife yet.”

Eren rolled his eyes. “Shut up, I can’t help that I’m worried…”

He felt Levi squeeze his hand. “I know. Hey, do me a favor while I’m gone?” Eren gave his full attention and Levi glanced over to Hanji who was reading a parenting book out loud to an embarrassed Petra. “Hang out with Hanji sometimes And Petra, too.”

“I will. Don’t overwork yourself.” He paused. “And make some friends.” Eren added quickly.

“Ew. You know I don’t like being sociable.” Eren pouted. Levi groaned. “I’ll _try_ but I make no promises.”

Smiling, Eren leaned down to kiss his boyfriend. Levi kissed back and they stayed like that for a while. Neither wanted to let go, but Hanji clearing her throat indicated it was time to say goodbye.

“I love you,” Levi said quickly, giving Eren a tight hug, then repeating the motion for both Petra and Hanji.

“I love you too.” Eren replied, his lower lip quivering.

Levi gave a final look to Petra, Eren, and Hanji. The three of them looked sad to see him pick up his carry on and he rolled his eyes as he made his way toward his gate. “I’ll be back in like five months. Don’t do anything stupid while I’m gone.”

They watched as Levi walked to the gate with the rest of the boarders to get on the plane and Eren wiped his eyes. Hanji threw her arm around him and pulled him into a half-hug which Petra joined.

 _Five months..._ Eren smiled. _And the answer will still be yes._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there was like 30 seconds of smut because i really suck at writing it and i didn't want to take an entire month like the last time. but i tried because they need to sex more okay yeah. also i've broken like 5 pairs of headphones in the process of this fic. the things i sacrifice... *wipes tear*
> 
> (shutter shades are the name of the sunglasses Kanye West wore that one time, i think)
> 
> GUYS I HAVE BEEN WRITING THIS FOR LIKE 9 MONTHS THAT IS THE MOST DEDICATED TO ANYTHING I HAVE EVER BEEN OKAY. That said, sorry this chapter was a bit rushed.


	34. Chapter 34

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> la fin de toutes choses.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter summary translation: the end of all things [which was going to be the chapter title but meh; also a song by p!atd which kind of was the main [song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNBshkM77Cc) for this fic.]
> 
> I rewrote this at least three times because I was unsure of how i could write the perfect ending. then i laughed because i can't write worth a butt so i chose the easier one. Anyway, here we go. Last chapter. Bon Voyage.

“We’ve had this planned for weeks,” Levi growled into the receiver of his phone. “You said you would be here. You have _my_ damn car. Why aren’t you here already?”

 _“Sorry,”_ the woman on the other line breathed out, excitedly. The giddiness in her voice was evident. _“There tends to be traffic around spring break, you know~!”_

“When did you leave?”

 _“If you think I just left ten minutes ago you can kiss my ass.”_ The woman barked. _“I’ve been trying to get there for an hour. Be patient. Chill around the gift-shop. I’ll call you when we’re there.”_

Levi huffed out a sigh and turned to look around the airport. There had been a large influx of families and college students from around the state since he got there, some of which had grouped up and celebrated their return or leave for the week-long break that would ensue.

“The shit in that gift-shop is expensive.” Levi mumbled into the receiver. The glare of a phone-charm caught his eye and he rolled his eyes, smiling to himself. “How long do you think you’ll be?”

He heard her repeat the question away from the phone and a male voice responded. Levi smirked at his friend’s choice of riding companion and sat against the wall, his bags at his feet. _“Well, if it weren’t for the slow-ass grandpa in front of everyone else, we’d be there in ten to fifteen minutes. Oh—oh my god, finally. Levi, people are going, so I have to hang up. I’ll call you when we’re there, okay?”_

“Yeah. Bye,”

The call ended after the woman bid a farewell in return. Levi stuffed his phone into his pocket and looked around the airport again before finally sliding to the floor and laying his head against the top of one of his larger bags.

It had been a long flight and Levi hadn’t gotten much sleep during it or the night before. Excitement had hit him hard in the chest when he had gotten settled and ready to sleep, so it didn’t come easy. Or quickly. He was lucky to have slept at all. And the flight was noisy and bumpy, not to mention uncomfortable and granted him barely two hours of shuteye.

His eyes drooped and despite the hustle and bustle of the airport he allowed himself to shut his eyes. Just for a minute, he told himself. Just for a minute.

Levi was woken up by hands tightly gripping his shoulders and shaking him until his eyes opened. Above him, a brunette woman continued to shake him until finally he smacked her hands off of him, and he grunted as he brought himself to his feet. He realized that he hadn’t had his eyes shut for _just_ a minute.

“It’s dangerous to fall asleep in an airport,” she said. “What if I was some creep who tried to steal your organs while you were sleeping?”

“I wouldn’t put it past you, Hanji.” Levi smirked.

Hanji laughed and pulled him into a tight hug. “Good to see you, Levi.”

When she released him, he took note of the man standing behind her. “So I was right; she did rope you into coming along with her?”

“Hey!” Hanji gasped, as though offended, before the other man could open his mouth. “He _wanted_ to come. Isn’t that right, Moblit?”

“Well,” he smiled sheepishly. “Rico’s drilling the new desk hands so I figured I’d keep Hanji company on the ride here. Though… I’d rather be anywhere than at work during that time.”

“How bad?” Levi jerked his bags up by the handles.

Hanji and Moblit exchanged looks of displeasure while Hanji picked up Levi’s carry on and threw the bag over her shoulder, the strap tight in her grip. “They’re both fresh out of high school, so I’m sure you can imagine.” Moblit finally said.

“Ew… Teenagers.” The sassy eye roll Hanji sent in Levi’s direction had him quirking an eyebrow. “What?”

“Nothing, I just can’t believe I heard that come out of your mouth.”

As the three adults strolled out of the airport and into the parking lot, warm spring-time air graced them. Levi spotted his car and took the lead of the other two, so relieved that it didn’t have a hint of dirt or a single scratch on it. He held his breath when opening the driver-side door to the backseat and let the air ease out of his lungs when he saw that it was as spotless in that moment as it was the day he left.

Hanji opted to drive despite Levi asking for the keys, and she won the short-lived argument the two of them had. Moblit had offered to sit in the back but Levi shook his head and sat in with his luggage.

The woman in the driver-seat squealed as they pulled out into less than heavy traffic, practically bouncing in her seat. “Everyone is so excited to see you, oh my god. I reminded Petra that we were coming to get you today and I thought she was going to start crying.”

“It hasn’t even been half a year.” Levi looked out the window and scowled at the car beside theirs. “How is Petra?”

“She’s showing,” Hanji answered quickly. “We went shopping the other day because she was fed up with how all her cute shirts weren’t covering her baby-bump—you can’t even really call it that anymore, though—so we went out and bought her some new shirts… so she’s doing well. She, Erwin and Auruo are waiting back at the apartment for you. They’re really excited to see you.”

“And you haven’t told Eren, right?”

“I haven’t said a word.” Hanji sang.

Levi and Eren had talked nearly every day since he had left for France again. The first few weeks seemed to be rough for the teen especially after having to go back to school, but once he got back into the groove of things he was his usual happy self.

Along with being his usual happy self, Eren would often drive over to the apartment complex to hang around with Hanji or Petra or both girls after he got off of school, and sometimes he would have Armin or Mikasa tagging along.

Everyone got along. Everyone was happy. Everything was good.

Hanji chattered on excitedly about the past three-ish months, bringing up things about her and Mike becoming close friends again, her getting a job filling in for Petra at Ral’s when the pregnant girl couldn’t work, and so on.

Traffic had let up, thank god, and it only took them fourty-five minutes to get to the complex. Hanji complained a little about how it had taken her an hour and a half to get to the airport, but she shut her trap after they got out of the car. She took Levi’s carry on and strapped it over her arm as she had when they left, and she and Moblit waited for him to get his things out from the back seat.

“I’ve got it,” He said when they reached for his bags.

Hanji shrugged and took Moblit’s hand in hers. Levi cocked an eyebrow and smirked, making Moblit look away, his cheeks reddening, and Hanji giggled.

“When did that happen?” Levi gestured to their joined hands.

The brunette dragged Moblit toward the door by his hand, slowly to make sure Levi was following. “About two weeks ago.” She opened the door for the two men, Moblit staying beside her with her hand in his and Levi walking past the two and inside.

Rico was leaning over the top of the reception desk massaging her temples while a tall black haired male and a light-blond haired girl bickered on the other end of the desk. The white haired woman’s eyes shot over to Moblit, the grey irises sharing the same ferocity of a lions’ and the corner of her lip twitched.

“Uh… I’m gonna go try to help Rico. I’ll be up as soon as I can.” Moblit released Hanji’s hand and slid away from the two of them. Rico straightened up and turned toward the two desk hands who were still bickering as Moblit approached.

Levi and Hanji waited for Moblit and Rico to exchange a few words before they filed into the elevator. As it went up, Hanji grinned to her shorter friend. “So how was France?”

“It was the same as it was when you called me last week, Hanji.” The shorter male answered, pressing the button for his floor.

Humming, the brunet quickly pulled Levi in for another hug. “I really did miss you.”

“I can tell,” Levi breathed, half-hugging her back with one arm. “So. How did you and Moblit become a thing?”

Hanji blushed lightly and looked toward the elevator doors. “Well, Rico left early one day because she wanted to catch a movie with her husband so I hung around at the front desk with Moblit. And we were talking about what bullshit the series finale of How I Met Your Mother was, and one thing lead to another and I ended up asking him if he wanted to get dinner with me.”

“That’s cute.”

“Nicholas Sparks novel cute?”

Levi snorted as the doors opened. “If that’s what you want to hear, sure.” As the two of them made their way toward the door, he could hear music playing from the inside of his apartment. “Did you decide to throw me a homecoming party?”

“You could say that,” Hanji smiled. She opened the door allowing the music from inside to travel down the hall. “Guuuys~!”

Levi barely got through the door before Petra was throwing herself into his arms. “Welcome home!” She all but shouted when she had her arms around him.

“Welcome home!” Auruo and Erwin called from the couch, both getting to their feet.

Petra released Levi and took a step, smiling brightly at him. She had a glow about her, Levi noticed. He looked down to see Petra’s plump baby-bump curving out beneath a pink and yellow shirt. It was about the size of a basketball that was cut in half and strapped to her once flat stomach.

Before he could say anything, she gasped and took his hand in hers and pressed his hand onto her belly, palm down. She made him feel around until a tiny jolt hit the lower part of his palm. “Did you feel it?”

It suddenly felt like the world was moving too fast, but not fast at all. Petra was just a bit over five months pregnant. She was going to be a mother. Auruo was going to be a father. Everyone’s future was forming so well. It honestly surprised him. He had always had a bad feeling that after high school he would lose his three closest friends. He always had a fear that everything would change and they would grow apart.

But that’s not what was happening. Two of them were engaged with a baby on the way. Erwin was well on his way to another promotion to an ungodly successful company. Adding Hanji to the group had been very good for the sanity of the three of them and now that she was out of her rut it seemed like sunshine was pouring in from all angles.

They were all close. And he was relieved for that.

“The baby’s kicking already…” Levi could barely form the words. “It’s been five months; do you know what you’re having yet?”

Hanji shut the door behind them and set Levi’s carry on the floor beneath the coatrack. She slid in past Levi and stood beside Erwin at the couch, the three of them watching Levi begin to tear up as the baby kicked a second time.

“The doctors said…” Petra’s smile widened as she paused for dramatic effect. “It’s going to be a girl. Levi—hey, d-don’t cry!”

Fucking emotions making the most beautiful of moments painfully more beautiful than they should ever be.

He pulled Petra in for a hug, careful of her belly. “I can’t help it.” He breathed and ignored the giggle that came from Hanji. “You fucking grew up too fast, Petra.” When he let go of her he wiped his eyes and looked toward Erwin and Auruo. “And so did you two fuckers. God…”

“No need to get so emotional,” Erwin teased.

“Fuck off.” Levi wiped his eyes free of tears again and stepped past Petra to flop down on the couch. Hanji took the spot to his left, Erwin to his right. “We’re so old now.”

“We’re in our mid-twenties.” Auruo said.

“Shut up.” Levi sat his elbows against his knees and laid his face in his hands for a minute. “If any of you ever tell anyone I was crying just now…”

When he didn’t complete his threat, Hanji tapped him with her elbow. “It’s not like you to get so emotional over little things. Is everything okay?”

Everything was fine. Everything was very fine. It was a good kind of emotional, no matter how weird it was for Levi to have actually cried over the words ‘it’s a girl’. He nodded once and stared at his lap, then nodded again before pulling his head back from his hands and leaning against the couch.

Finally, he spoke. “Do you guys wanna see the rings?”

-

_45 minutes later_

Eren’s eyes closed as the oscillating fan in Armin’s living room pushed air into his face. Armin had invited him over randomly with no reason why other than ‘just come over’.

“How does it feel to be eighteen?” the blond asked. He was hanging halfway off of the couch, hair tied into a ponytail and his bangs droopy down toward the floor.

His friend shrugged, speaking into the fan to give his voice a robotic sound. “Still feels like I’m seventeen.”

“Bad answer.” Armin sat upright and stretched his legs out across the couch. “You’re an adult now. You don’t feel like one?”

“Not really.” Eren turned his head to look at his best friend. “By my birthday was only two days ago so I’m not sure if it’s actually hit me that I’m eighteen yet.”

“Still a bad answer.” Armin snorted. Eren rolled his eyes. The blond stood up and pulled his phone from the pocket of his shorts to look at the text message he just received. “Hey, uh, you wanna go get some food?”

Eren waited for the fan to blow in his face again before he stood up. “Sure. Where to?”

“Well, Jean just told me he and Mikasa and Annie were at Ral’s so I figured we could meet them over there and eat with them.”

As the brunet thought it over, he sent the other teen a shrug. “I guess.”

Armin smiled and led Eren out the front door after telling his grandfather they were meeting some friends for lunch and the two teens got in his car. He pulled his keys from his pocket, placed his phone on the center console between his and Eren’s seat and started the vehicle before buckling his seatbelt then backed out of the driveway.

Staring out the window, Eren fastened his seatbelt and sighed inwardly. He still had a month to go. One more fucking month, then school would be over and Levi would be back and they would be done playing long-distance.

Traffic was a huge bitch to deal with but they made it to Ral’s in under fourty-five minutes. Armin swiped his phone from the center console before Eren got out of the car to send a quick text to Jean.

_Armin [1:53 P.M]: We’re here._

Jean responded barely a minute later

_Jean [1:54 P.M.]: Great. Come on in, we’re ready._

The two teens walked up to the small store chain and Eren pushed open the door to Ral’s, the little bell above the door sounding their arrival. Little Ral looked up from the register and a smile spread across her lips as she slipped around the corner to greet the two of them.

Ral’s wasn’t particularly busy right now, which was strange. Sure, it was the middle of the day, but it was spring break and spring breakers were hungry fuckers. But oh well. Quiet and not crowded was always nice.

“Hello, Armin, Eren.” She said.

“Hi,” Eren greeted her. “We’re meeting with Jean and Mikasa and Annie.”

“Of course,” Petra’s small cousin couldn’t hold back her giggle as she waved them along. “Right this way, please.” She brought them to the side of the restaurant where the booths were and Mikasa, Annie, and Jean were waiting for them.

Armin slid past Little Ral and Eren to move into the booth beside Jean. Eren was about to sit beside his sister when a hand squeezed his shoulder. He turned his head and almost dropped to his knees.

“Hey.” Levi smiled up at the brunet. Eren’s lips were parted slightly and he felt his heart slam against his ribcage. When Eren didn’t say anything, Levi’s smile ticked up to a smirk. “Are you just going to stare at me or am I going to get a hug?”

“You… you’re back a month early.” Eren pulled the smaller man into a hug and heard his sister and friends giggle quietly. Another group of people joined into the giggle fest, and Eren looked up to see Hanji, Petra, Erwin, Auruo, and Moblit standing near the register where Little Ral had retreated back to.

Nodding, Levi squeezed him. “I am. I missed your birthday and I kind of felt bad, so I thought I’d come back as a late present.”

Eren’s bottom lip quivered for a moment before both curved into a smile and he breathed out. “Are you leaving in a week again?” He dropped his arms and they rested at his side.

The black haired male didn’t respond for a moment making the other occupants of the restaurant go silent. Finally, he shook his head. “Nah.”

Levi would later explain the fact that since he had only taken one “legit” class for the spring semester, he only had the one exam to take and that he got to take it early due to the fact that the instructor had gone through the course quick enough that it all worked out so that he didn’t have to stay until the actual last day.

“So, about that proposal,” Levi began. His tone made Eren laugh. “As romantic as I would love to make it, I’d prefer if you didn’t have me get down on one knee.”

“He’s already short enough as it is!” Hanji called from the register.

“I’m going to ignore that for now,” Levi shot back at the brunette without looking away from Eren.

Green eyes glistened and stared directly into the deep grey-blue of Levi’s own as the two of them exhaled in unison, Eren a breathlessly nervous wreck and Levi was just nervous in general. Behind Eren, Mikasa was gnawing at her bottom lip and Armin was hugging Jean’s arm so tightly into his side that if he squeezed any harder Jean was sure Armin could rip it off.

“The answer is still yes,” Eren blurted out, his words shaking slightly. “Oh my god, it’s still yes and it always will be yes and—”

“Eren Jaeger will you marry me?”

Eren threw his arms around Levi’s neck, nearly knocking the older man onto the floor. “What did I just say?” He leaned forward and kissed Levi on the lips once, twice, three times, repeating the sentence between kisses. Then he pressed his forehead against the other’s and let out a shaky breath. “It was always _yes._ ”

“I need your left hand.” Levi whispered.

As Eren pulled his arms from around Levi’s neck and slowly lifted his left hand, Levi held his own hand out and Erwin stepped away from the register just long enough to hand Levi a small burgundy ring box. When the blond returned to the register, Levi opened the small box to reveal a silver band that he promptly slid onto Eren’s ring finger.

“Fuck.” Eren breathed after a minute of complete silence. “I’m getting married… _we’re_ gonna get married.”

“Yeah…” Levi smiled.

Another silence passed until Hanji couldn’t take the quiet anymore. She broke into a loud cry, eyes filling with tears and she clung to Moblit’s side. “My boys are engaged! My babies! Oh, god, my heart can’t take much more!”

Following Hanji’s lead, Petra led the round of applause that Armin quickly joined in and the rest of them as they clapped for the newly engaged couple.

-

Levi ended up pulling Eren away from the noise and celebration of their engagement and the two walked along the road, hands locked and fingers intertwined. They were headed toward their own little “beach” beneath the highway.

“We’re engaged,” Eren kept repeating under his breath as though he couldn’t quite believe it himself. Levi only smiled and squeezed his fiancé’s hand in response.

Neither cared about the sand or dirt as they sat on the ground beneath the highway, listening to the river slosh and swish against the support beams and the bank. Levi leaned his head against Eren’s shoulder.

“Do you love me?” Eren asked after a while.

“I do.” Levi answered. “Do you love me?”

“The answer will always be yes.” Eren replied.

Levi smiled and sat up slightly, turning his head toward the brunet. Eren looked back and leaned in for a soft kiss before they looked back out at the river, Levi’s head occupying Eren’s shoulder again.

Telling Grisha and Levi’s parents would come later, only for both boys to find out Hanji did the honors of spilling the beans for them.

* * * * *

_Epilogue_

Eren and Levi had their wedding early in July. The theme was actually Armin’s idea: a nice beach wedding. They didn’t have it under the highway though; Hanji, Mikasa, and Levi’s mother wouldn’t allow that no matter how “okay with it” Levi and Eren were. But it wasn't a big wedding, and what with the way Hanji and Levi's mother took charge of it, it didn't take much planning at all. Levi took Eren’s last name.

Not long after their wedding—exactly two weeks after—Petra gave birth to a beautiful baby girl with large brown eyes. Her name was Dakota Sage Bossard.

To everyone’s surprise, Armin was the one to propose to Jean. Eren suspiciously won a bet with Mikasa around the same time, making him twenty bucks richer.

Mikasa and Annie never got married but they were totally okay with that. After all, it was just a piece of paper.

Hanji and Moblit got married two years after Levi and Eren. Levi was Hanji’s “man of honor”, as she called it. Dakota Sage was the perfect flower girl.

Eren finally got to go to France with Levi that December, a week before Christmas. Their trip was wonderful.

One year later, Eren and Levi adopted a little girl. They named her Carla.

 

 _End_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~~how the fuck do you end a fanfiction~~
> 
>  
> 
> ~~also, for the record, Eren and his friends are/were all seniors in high school. Eren is 18 in this chapter and on. kthx~~
> 
>  
> 
> 'Twas a fun ride and I love and thank all of you that stayed along for it <3


End file.
